Megamorphs 6: Survivors of the Kelbrid
by capnnerefir
Summary: When the politics of three races converge, the galaxy is in serious trouble. It's up to the Animorphs to save it again. But this time, the original Animorphs are unable to help. It's up to Jeanne, James, David, Al, Melissa and Ronnie to save the galaxy...
1. Chapters 1 through 6

Imagine some fancy coverart with Jeanne, James, David, Melissa, Al, and Ronnie, with some Ssri'Kai in the background.

**Megamorphs 6:**

**Survivors of the Kelbrid**

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

So...long time no read, huh FFN? Life's been REALLY crazy for me the last six months. I moved from my home state to a new one. Got sent away from college due to a clerical error on their part. Moved in with my girlfriend (who I love more than anything). Got kicked out by her father. Moved into a little city, living alone for the first time. Got evicted because I couldn't find a job to pay my rent. Moved back in with Gina (my girlfriend, who I love more than anything). Got kicked out by her father again. Moved BACK to the previous state. Worked for a month so that I could afford to move back. Got screwed by my bank and lost all my money. Finally managed to move into a kinda slummy house with my girlfriend thanks to money readers donated (Thanks for everything, guys. I'll pay you back soon, I promise). Got kicked out AGAIN when our lease expired at the end of the month. Moved into an apartment in the ghetto with a girl we were sharing the house with. She turned out to be a psychopath and threatened to murder us after we asked her to pay $44 for the rent; she hadn't paid anything the whole month we were there together. So we had to leave that apartment and moved in with Gina's parents AGAIN. Got kicked out by her father AGAIN. So we had no choice but to move BACK in with the psychopath, since we had nowhere else to go. Now, I have a good job and we'll be able to afford to move into a much, MUCH better place by the end of the week.

Phshew.

If you were wondering why I haven't been writing lately, that's why. Anyhow, about this story:

This one contains a lot of things I wanted to include in Neomorphs for a while. I'm having a blast writing it, and I hope you enjoy it as well. It's good to be back.

One more thing: I've never actually minded criticism, especially if it's well-informed and intelligent. So, for that reason, I will no longer be telling you all to go to hell if you don't enjoy the story. I'm not sure what I'll replace it with, but the phrase really wasn't iconic or anything anyway. So for now:

Enjoy or eat a pickle.

* * *

**CHAPTER 1**

**David**

My name is David. By now, you should know that I don't really have a last name, and I can't tell you where I live. If you're a Yeerk, you already know, and if you're a human...well, the less you know, the less likely it is that the world's going to explode. Yeah, that's a serious concern of mine these days. I really didn't think things were going to get worse than when I was dodging birds and hoping for a piece of cheese.

Instead of birds, my days were filled with naps and TV. And cheese. Tobias and Rachel were married two days and took the Reliquary off for their honeymoon in China that night. Until they came back, the rest of us Alphamorphs wouldn't be going back to the place we called home. Although in this situation ''the rest of us' was pretty much me, Al, and James. No offense to Ronnie, but he didn't look like he'd be of any help to anyone. The man can barely stand half the time.

I figured that the Yeerks were up to something back on Alpha Front. But whatever it was, James, Al, and I weren't going to be able to put much of a kink in their plans. Honestly, I think that going off on a honeymoon was probably the stupidest thing Tobias has done in a long time. This war wasn't going to pause so he and Rachel could have a little fun. But I'm not going to tell that man he can't go and have a little fun with his new wife. He literally used to eat guys like me for breakfast.

So while the Yeerks were doing…whatever it is they were doing…back on Alpha Front, I was sitting around Rachel's house watching TV and eating cheese. Relaxation isn't a natural thing for me, so when I'm just hanging around, I tend to be a little on edge, so when something happens, I tend to snap too pretty quickly. I had no idea how hectic this day was about to get, though.

I was sitting on the arm of one of the couches, watching TV with Sara and Al. I wasn't paying that much attention, to be honest. Partially it was because I was trying to figure out what kind of fun the Yeerks would be having without us there to keep an eye on them. Mostly, though, it was because Sara insisted on trying to hold conversations with me. It isn't that I minded, really. I just found Sara...confusing.

She's beautiful; I'm not going to pretend I don't think that. She's like Rachel was when she was our age. Tall, blonde, and full of life. She was much nicer, though, more gentle and understanding. And talk about someone who could keep on her feet - the fact that she was talking to a rat while her new alien brother-in-law was standing around didn't seem to bother her at all. If I was going to get involved with anyone, it'd be her, if she'd let me. And from some of the conversations we've had, I'm pretty sure she would.

But I'm a rat, and I've been one for a long time now. And don't come at me with examples of why that shouldn't hold me back, I know how well it worked for Tobias and Rachel; that isn't it. I've been a rat for a l_ong_ time. It's been five, maybe six or even seven years now. And to be perfectly honest, rats generally don't live that long. I think it's the morphing that's kept me going so far. It keeps me healthy, free of diseases and the other things that make you die faster.

I'm still a rat, though, and there comes a time when your body just can't take much more, no matter how healthy you are. And I think I'm getting to that point pretty soon. I'm slower than I used to be, and to be honest, my eyes, ears, and nose aren't quite what they once were, either. If I was still out in the wild, I'd probably have been eaten by now.

So here's the kicker about all that. I've been alive for...twenty years? Twenty one? I honestly don't know. But for the most part, my mind is still like it was when I was fourteen. Sure, I'm smarter about some things, wiser, and more experienced. But I still like watching cartoons and I still hate going to school, and I still want to stay up late hanging out with my friends. Socially, I've never had the chance to get beyond that point. I feel like I'm fourteen. My human body is fourteen. Everyone treats me like I'm fourteen. But my rat body, my _real_ body, is that of an old rat, one who isn't going to live much longer. I'm an old man, a teenager, and a young adult all at once. So I have no idea what I'm going ot do about this teenage girl who seems to like me just a little bit.

All of those problems left my mind when someone rang the doorbell. Since Animorphs never bothered to do that, and since we were all here anyway, it had to be a visitor. Al left the room while I scurried under the couch. Sara went over and answered the door. From where I was, I couldn't see anything, but I could hear.

"Hello," a man's voice greeted her. It sounded familiar somehow. "I'm looking for Jake Berenson. I was told I could find him at this address."

Sara wasn't going to just let people in, though. "Who are you two?" she asked.

I concentrated. I could definitely smell two men. A new voice answered, one I clearly recognized. "I am EPIC Operative Adrian Rook, of the International Invasion Investigation Force. Tri-I would like to speak with Mr. Berenson regarding a matter of some delicacy."

"We were also told we might be able to find another Animorph, Marco, here, as well as Prince Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill," the first voice added. "It is vital that we speak with them."

"Told by whom?" Sara asked.

"Your step-father, Jacques," Rook answered. "He's always been a reliable source of information for us, to say the least."

((Let them in,)) I advised Sara. ((We don't want them thinking that anything unusual is going on here.)) But something unusual was definitely going on. Tri-I didn't just show up at peoples homes asking for Animorphs. Did they know? Had they figured it out?

At least the Iskoort were at Marco's mansion. It would have been impossible to explain those to Tri-I. Almost as impossible as convincing Naomi to let them into her home. The last thing we needed was for Tri-I to see a bunch of unregistered and unknown aliens hanging around the house.

As Sara went to find Jake, Marco, and Ax, I peeked out from under the couch to take a look at these two. Rook would be impossible to miss. The man was the size of a Hork-bajir, and looked like he grew up boxing them. But it was the other man that I recognized first. There was no way I couldn't know who he was. And when I saw his face, I swear my heart stopped.

**CHAPTER 2**

**Jeanne**

Jake, Marco, Melissa, Aximili, James, Kristina, Jordan, and I were all using an Iskoort device to watch the show of our memories that they had made. It worked much like an ordinary film. Someone watched the events and chose bits and pieces to put together to make a coherent story, cutting out parts that were just boring. It was all much more lifelike than any human film, though. And it wasn't just memories, either. It came with emotions. They were blunted, but still strong. There were some parts of the story that we just couldn't bear to watch, and others we wanted to see over and over again.

We thought it was a good way for Melissa to try and get some more experience; and I thought it might help her to understand Ax better after seeing things through his eyes. I know it helped me to forgive him, feeling his own confusion about his loyalties to his own people and to ours. It is hard to remain upset with someone after that. I still was not certain I trusted his judgment, but it was easier to forgive his mistakes.

"Hey, guys?" Sara asked, stepping into the room we were using for the showing. We were sitting in a circle with the cylindrical device between us, with small bands attached to our temples. "I'm…not sure what you're doing, but some guys from Tri-I want to talk to you about something."

"Just some Tri-I lackeys?" Marco asked. "It can't be that important."

"Not random lackeys," Sara answered. "One of them's that Rook guy you mentioned."

"Things just got a whole lot more serious," Jake sighed. "Let's go see. If they sent Rook, we should be careful. Jeanne, you've got a Shredder on you?"

"Usually," I answered, taking the weapon out from under the chair I was sitting on. It was a habit I had been taught to get into, and one that I saw no reason to break.

"Good. I don't want to end up shooting Operatives, but if he knows…"

Jake, Marco, and I looked at Ax as stealthily as we could. Melissa gave him a look of open accusation. James was just focused on following Sara and finding out what this was about. I didn't know James well, but he was solid, reliable, someone you could trust to do a task properly. In a pinch, he could be an effective leader, and he was also a great follower. He was well suited for the life of a soldier, someone who could give orders and who was more than happy to take them. Over all, I liked him.

We descended the stairs and found the Operatives waiting in the living room. One of them was sitting casually in a chair. Rook was standing next to him, his arms folded, his rifle over his shoulder.

"Jake, Prince Aximili" Rook began. "Good to see you again. And the rest of you. You remember me?"

((We spoke after Carl's funeral,)) Ax responded sadly. ((Yes, I remember you. Who is your colleague?))

"He's our God."

"…..come again?" Marco asked after we all spent a few moments staring silently at Rook.

The seated man spoke. "My name is John Montresor, Global Operations Director for Tri-I," he explained calmly. "In other words, I'm the man in charge of the entire organization."

That made my blood run cold, and to be honest I almost fell down. This man, sitting casually in our living room, was one of the most powerful men in the known galaxy. No one on Earth had the information and resources he did. If he was here, this wasn't just big. This was enormous.

"What made you come here personally?" Jake asked after we recovered somewhat.

"There is something extremely delicate we need to discuss. To make a long story short, you may or may not know that Mars is the native planet of a race called the Skrit Na. They're harmless, if a little annoying. Mars is also the location of a Pythagi base. Recently, Yeerk forces from that base attacked Vladimir Putin, making it very clear that the base is a threat. So we need to eliminate it.

"Right now, Tri-I is making battle plans, attempting reconnaissance, and attempting to do some zero-gravity training. We are confident that an invasion of Mars could meet with success. The two nations closest enough to achieving the necessary levels of technology are the United States of America and Russia. I contacted them about this situation. Vladimir Putin has already pledged soldiers and ships to the attack, and we expect that the United States will do the same very soon. We are going to be invading Mars.

"But this is the first time human military forces have done anything like this. We want every advantage we can get, and I cannot think of anyone better to ask. I will understand if you do not wish to take part in the assault, but I believe you three would have valuable insight that will help in training troops. I have already contracted your superiors, Prince Aximili, and they have agreed to give us your aid. I would like to count on the other Animorphs as well."

((Prince Jake, I believe that providing them with tactical advice would be beneficial,)) Ax said privately to us. ((Not only will it increase the chances that the human military forces will succeed, it will also earn us some favor with Tri-I and perhaps make them less inclined to investigate our doings in the future.))

Jake nodded slightly. "I can't take part in the attack, but I'd be glad to share anything I know that might help. I want our boys to come home from this, and taking that base out would be a huge load off of my mind."

"I guess I'm in, too," Marco decided. "If you just listen to Jake here, you'll just end up going in without any sort of plan and winging it on the way out. Trust me, it happened all the time to us Animorphs. I'll help you out."

((If my superiors have decided that I should assist you, then I have no option to refuse. Even if I did have the option, however, I would not use it. I will be honored to aid in the training of your forces.))

"I'm glad to hear it," Montresor answered. "We will leave in ten minutes. I am sorry to put you on such short notice, but I don't want word to get out that Tri-I big wigs are sitting around with Animorphs. People might get the wrong idea - or worse, the right one. Rook and I will be waiting in the blue minivan outside. It will take us to a ship we have waiting."

((Prince Jake, I think that perhaps it would be best to use our own transportation. There is a chance, a small one but still a chance, that this is some sort of ruse. They might know about the invasion, or about Carl, and be enacting some sort of trap. I believe we should follow them in the ship we stole form the Yeerks rather than take theirs.))

"We have our own ship," Jake answered. "If it's all the same to you, we'd prefer to use that one.

"Any particular reason?" Montresor asked.

"It's Yeerk-made," Marco answered. "There might be a thing or two to learn from it."

"Fair enough. You can follow us in that. We will be departing in ten minutes."

Rather suddenly, Ronnie's voice broke in. "I don't want to interrupt, but your little hologram thingy is going off. You friend Mark wants to talk about someone named Erek King."

Jake nodded to me. "You and the others go see what Mark wants." His voice didn't betray any of the urgency I knew he must be feeling. "We'll call you guys as soon as we can. Good luck."

"Same to you," Melissa called as we followed Ronnie into the other room. On the wall was a life-sized hologram of a Chee we knew as Mark.

"Glad I caught you. I've got some important information about Erek that you need to hear."

**CHAPTER**** 3**

**James**

"Erek? What about Erek?" I asked. "We haven't seen or heard anything from him in months. Some of us were getting worried."

Mark nodded. "There's a reason for that. Months ago, the Yeerks sent a diplomatic detachment into a sector of space beyond what used to be called Kelbrid space, looking for some new allies."

((That could be a problem,)) David admitted.

"You don't know the half of it. The species they're trying to ally with is one you've met before."

"Who?" Jeanne asked.

Mark took a deep breath. I have no idea why the android felt the need to do that, but he did. "The Ssri'Kai."

We were silent for a moment. Finally, Al broke the silence by saying, with typical Andalite understatement, ((That could have an extremely adverse effect on our current war.))

"That is one way of putting it," Mark agreed. "Erek has been doing what he can to sabotage the meetings to keep this from going through, but according to his last transmission to us, the Yeerks are tired of waiting. They want their new allies now and infestation is much quicker than negotiation. Erek is trying to stall that, but he needs help. Someone who can shut down the Yeerk operations there. And that isn't something he can think of to do without hurting anyone."

"So we're what, Erek's hit-men?" I asked.

"In a sense, yes," Jeanne answered. "We cannot allow this plan to succeed, James. You must see that."

"I'm not arguing," I responded. "I was just making sure we all knew that we were being called from the other side other galaxy to do someone else's dirty work."

((Yeah, I know that's what we're doing,)) David responded. ((And if it stops the Yeerks from getting more Ssri'Kai, I'm all in. Two Ssri'Kai beat James, Cassie, Al, and me without much of a fight. We can't let them get an army of them. For that, I don't mind being an android's hired gun.))

"Hired gun?" Ronnie commented. "If we're smashing Yeerks, I'll do it for free. I need the practice."

((I would like to have Prince Tobias's permission but as he is currently unavailable and has advised me to act on my own judgment, I support the idea of putting a stop to this.))

"Just so long as we all know that we're basically assassins, I'm in," I answered.

"Being an assassin is not as bad as it may sound," Jeanne replied. "I am in as well. Melissa?"

"You have to ask? I'm with Ronnie. I'd do this even if there wasn't any sort of advantage in it."

((Do you have any idea how to get us there, Mark?)) David asked. ((Tobias and Rachel took the Reliquary, and Marco, Jake, and Ax are off in the ship we stole when we had to rescue the Iskoort.))

"In order to get that far in time to be of any help, you would need a ship faster than any built by Andalite, human, Yeerk, or Anati. There is only one ship that can move fast enough to get you there in time. It was built by those who built me: the Pemalites."

((I remember Prince Tobias mentioning the Pemalite ship, but he said it was at the bottom of the ocean,)) Al responded. ((How could we get it?))

"Unfortunately, the ship has been moved. Did the other Animorphs ever tell you about the Nartec?"

"Fish people who collect boats and do in appropriate things with them," I summarized.

((I thought they built cities with them,)) David argued.

"That's not an appropriate use for a boat."

((Fair enough.))

"They collected the Pemalite ship," Mark continued. "We aren't sure where they're keeping it, but you need to get it. They could do a lot of damage with it if they figure out its secrets, and you need it for transportation."

"What harm could a bunch of mermen do? I thought that ship was harmless," Ronnie muttered.

"For one thing, they could set all of us Chee from converse to kill," Mark answered. "I am sure none of us want that."

((Probably even less than we want an army of Ssri'Kai fighting against us,)) David answered. ((How do we get to the Nartec city?))

"According to the details we received from the other time the Animorphs went there," Mark answered, "orca or dolphin morphs should dive to the appropriate depth to reach the city. Alloran, do you think you can memorize the appropriate coordinates?"

((I believe so, with a little study of the appropriate underwater area.))

"Alright. Be careful. They weren't very happy with the other Animorphs the last time they went there. I believe it involved lots of stabbing and some attempts to extract DNA in a very primitive manner."

"Let me make sure I'm summarizing this right," I began. "We have to dive deep under the water into a hidden aquatic city, where we will probably end up being impaled by fish people, so that we can steal a spaceship built by ancient dogs so that we can fly it to the other side of the galaxy to stop the brain-stealing aliens from stealing the brains of the most dangerous species we've ever met, all without the help of the most experienced members of this team because they are all busy elsewhere. Right?"

((You have objections?)) David asked.

"No, no. Let's go get some flippers."

**CHAPTER 4**

**Al**

This appeared to be a very hectic day. Getting the Pemalite ship from the Nartec would not be simple, nor would stopping this new Yeerk plan. Mark's hologram shut off and I was just about to inform Prince Jake, Prince Aximili, and Marco of the situation via thought-speak when a new hologram appeared. This was one that I recognized instantly, a man I had met before.

Vladimir Vladimirovitch Putin. He might have rivaled GOD Montresor in power and influence, and he knew about the Yeerk invasion of Earth. A very powerful ally, and an extremely dangerous man. He was one of the few who made Prince Tobias wary, and to be honest, that terrifies me. I have seen Prince Tobias perfectly calm in the face of things that would stop an ordinary man's heart with fear. Vladimir Putin made him nervous, and that was truly frightening.

"Good, some of you are here," Putin greeted us. "Your leader was rather upset when I interrupted his honeymoon with this information, but he was kind enough to direct me to the rest of you."

((I don't like the sound of this,)) David moaned. ((These sorts of calls are never good.))

"What's the problem?" James asked. "There's always a problem."

"Oh yes, there is a problem," Putin answered. "You are aware that the Andalites are going to be electing a new head of the Electorate within the month, yes? Many feel that Lirem is not up to the demands of the position anymore. There are quite a few Andalites coming out of the woodwork to try and claim the position."

((Andalite politics are none of your concern,)) I said flatly.

"Incorrect, _Aristh_. Who gets elected to this position is of great concern to me. There are many Andalites who are not fond of me and would rather the Counsel not have dealings with me. But that would not be good for either of us, you see. Analites and humans need to work together, especially since we will have troops fighting side by side before long. I need to ensure that the Andalite people choose a leader who is sympathetic to Earth."

((Under no circumstances will we interfere with the Andalite electoral process,)) I answered. I know it was not my place to make this decision, but I could not even entertain the thought of a foreign power dictating our elections. It was unthinkable!

"I am not asking you to rig an election or anything so base," Putin responded. "Nor would I be asking you to do anything Prince Tobias would not ask of you. There is already an Andalite with the proper mindset in a position to win the election, with a little aid. Can you think of anyone better to lead a war against the Yeerks than Alloran-Semitur-Corass?"

" I can't," James admitted after a few moments. "He knows the Yeerks, and Tobias is always harping on how important that is. He's got guts, and he can make tough decisions. And I think he kind of likes us."

"Valid points," Jeanne consented.

Melissa nodded "After what the Visser did to him, Alloran would be a good choice."

"I really don't care what a bunch of aliens do with their elections," Ronnie muttered. "If it gets more of the slugs killed, fine. I don't care."

David turned to me. ((How do you feel about this, Al?))

((We should not interfere. It is not our place to decide who is elected and it is certainly not Mr. Putin's. No one should interfere in this.))

"You think no one is interfering?" Putin said. He almost laughed. Almost. "I can guarantee you that Yeerk elements are attempting to effect this decision. The same goes for the Pythagi, and for other elements on Earth. This is a decision that could determine the course of the war. If a fool who knows nothing of war is elected, it is very possible that the Andalite military will collapse, and the war effort along with it. "

((We could come to a compromise,)) David thought out loud. ((If we find evidence that the Yeerks or our other enemies are trying to get someone in particular elected, we take the necessary steps to put a stop to that. If we find nothing, though, they we stay out of it.))

I thought hard about that. I knew what Prince Tobias would do. It was important that we not take it upon ourselves to dictate the policies of other races. But just because we were not doing that did not mean our enemies would refrain from doing so as well, and we could not allow that to happen. He would agree with David's proposal.

((I agree with David,)) I decided. ((If we find any outside power attempting to influence the election, we should stop them from doing so.)) That was not limited to just our enemies.

"I think that would be best," Jeanne agreed. David and James nodded.

"I still don't care," Ronnie answered.

"Well, I do, and I think Al's right," Melissa decided.

Putin gave us a slight smile. I confess it was slightly frightening. "Good. You will find that things are as I have said. And perhaps when you see the situation for yourself, you will realize why Alloran-Semitur-Corass must win this election. Will you need transportation to the homeworld, or do you have your own?"

"We'll have our own," James answered.

"Excellent. I hope you can accomplish this without your usual leader."

So did I.

**CHAPTER 5**

**Melissa**

I hadn't been an Animorph for too long, so maybe I didn't know what I was talking about, but the whole thing sounded really out of control to me. Even crazier than stealing a Yeerk ship to go to mars to rescue the galaxy's most annoying aliens. Honestly I really wasn't sure about all of this, especially with Jake elsewhere. I didn't even know who was in charge anymore. In a way, it was kind of exciting. Better to be excited than afraid.

Al shut off Putin's hologram while David scurried off to explain everything to Jake, Marco, and Aximili. "This mission to Ssri'Kai space could be long and dangerous," Jeanne began. "I believe we should call everyone in here to explain what is happening. Jake, Marco, and Ax do not have much time, but my family deserves to know."

((Our family,)) Al added. ((That seems so odd to say. I will let David know to gather everyone up.))

At the moment, 'everyone' meant Jordan, Sara, and some girl named Kristina who the Alphamorphs brought along with them. I wasn't sure what she was doing, hanging around. From what I understand, her father was somewhere in Russia. She was still here. Whatever.

"To make a long story short," James explained to them, "We're going to be going off to a far off section of space to stop the Yeerks from getting some new allies."

"Why do you have to go?" Jordan demanded. "Couldn't the Andalites or Tri-I or someone handle this?"

"Only we know that Erek is an android and an ally," Jeanne explained. "It is not a secret we can have revealed to others. I am afraid it must be us."

"You're going to be careful, right?" Kristina asked us. It sounded like she was just asking James, though. Both she and Jordan were looking pretty closely at him. They had the same expressions on their faces. Now, I'm not good at guessing what's going on in peoples' heads, but I'd bet that both of them were a little more worried about James than they were about the rest of us.

"Well, with Rachel and Tobias of in China, we don't have much of a choice," James answered. "It's kind of hard to be reckless without them."

"What you should know is this," Jeanne added. "All of the Animorphs are going to be occupied for a time. Jake, Marco, and Ax will be busy helping Tri-I train soldiers. Tobias and Rachel are in China. The rest of us will be off-world. This means that the Yeerks may try and make serious pushes, and that is a serious problem.

((So we're going to have to do something we really didn't want to,)) David finished. ((Tobias and Ax both have morphing cubes. And as much as I hate the thought…well, _someone_ has to keep an eye on things here, and we don't know who else we can trust."

"Wait, what?" I demanded. "You're giving them the morphing power/ When did you all talk this over?"

((Months ago, Prince Tobias thought that a situation like this might arise, when all of the Animorphs might be incapacitated or otherwise unable to perform their duties,)) Al explained. ((He and Prince Jake cane very close to asking Joran to be an Animorph several times, but each time ultimately decided upon another solution.))

"It is a plan we hoped we would not have to use," Jeanne added. "Hopefully, they will not need to do anything. But in the event that there is a very serious danger…"

"You're serious about this?" Jordan asked.

"I wish we didn't have to ask this of you," James said slowly, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I really do. I know what it's like, to have this come out of nowhere at you. It happened to me twice. I don't want to put you in danger, but…well….it'd make us feel a lot better to know that someone is watching out for Earth while we're away. When Tobias and Rachel get back from their honeymoon, everything should be alright, but for now…"

"We can handle it," Sara said confidently. "Papa Jacques has been teaching me a lot about Yeerks and stuff. And I know he can help, too, if an emergency comes up."

((Emergency is the keyword here,)) David added. ((Trust me, you don't want any part of this unless you've got no choice.))

"I don't see that we do have one," Kristina answered. "I'm in. If I see Kelbrid in the street, I'll put them back underground for you."

"I'm with her," Sara agreed.

Jordan looked uncertain, but she sighed and nodded. "Yeah, alright. Only in an emergency."

Honestly, this ticked me off. Why didn't anyone tell me about this whole plan? Wasn't I a part of the team? Didn't I have a right to know? And for someone who was so against having me as an Animorph, Tobias sure seemed quick enough to let Kristina into the gang. She was even newer than I was!

Rachel and I have a lot in common. One way we're different, though, is that while she'd be yelling at someone about this, I kept quiet. I wasn't just mad; I was hurt, too. Jake didn't tell me about this. Why not? Wasn't I important to the team, to him? Or did I mean a lot less than I thought I did? If something happened to me, did he have a replacement standing by? I had no idea, and I didn't have time to ask him.

I've been having a lot of second thoughts about being an Animorph lately. It wasn't what I thought it would be. I knew it'd be tough and painful, I was prepared for that. What no one told me about was the guilt. I didn't feel bad for killing Yeerks, or even for their hosts. But there were other people we had to hurt along the way, and no one ever mentioned that.

And now I leaned that I wasn't as much a part of the team as I thought I was. Maybe this wasn't the right decision after all. I joined because I wanted to fight Yeerks. But the Animorphs were making is pretty clear that they didn't need me. Did I need them? Did I need Jake?

Or would I be better off on my own?

**CHAPTER 6**

**Ronnie**

All of this felt like a big waste of time to me. We were supposed to be soldiers, and what were we doing? Worrying about alien politics and leaving our own planet wide open for attack. I didn't care about the Andalite political process. I didn't care about Yeerk and Ssri'Kai alliances. There was only one thing that mattered to me now and that was killing Guraff 427. All of this was just getting in the way.

He was at Tobias's wedding. Do you have any idea - can you even imagine- you don't have a clue how hard it was not to attack him right then and there! The monster who murdered Cassie was at her best friend's wedding! That - it's inconceivable! And he took part in the ceremony! There is exactly one reason why I didn't go to my battle morph and attack him in the middle of it and that's because I was honestly too drunk to morph at that point. I could barely stand.

And now what we were doing? Wasting our time with alien politics and giving some little girls the power to morph. I guess they just pass that around to anyone these days. Hypocrites.

I was laying on the couch while the rest of them stood in a circle like some kind of weird cult. James was holding that Escafil Device. Jeanne, Melissa, Al, and David all had a hand on it somewhere. Then Sara, Jordan, and Kristina all touched it. That was it. Big. Freaking. Deal.

((Maybe we should get some kind of loyalty oath,)) David commented. Funny, but only coming from him. Of all the people to suggest a loyalty oath…

"Good luck," James said, giving Jordan a quick hug. I wouldn't have needed Cass's help to clue me in on the fact that something was going on between those two. Kristina also gave James a little hug. I saw Sara raise an eyebrow, but that was it. Then Al hugged Kristina, and I stopped paying attention after that. I don't want to watch some kind of weird, Animorph hug-fest.

"I would like to stay around for a little longer, but I believe we should depart as soon as we can," Jeanne suggested. "We do not know how much time we have to work with, and I think we should get that ship as soon as possible. Ronnie, do you have an appropriate underwater morph?"

"Sure, but that doesn't really matter, seeing as I'm not going." I responded.

((And why is that?)) David asked.

"Did you think I was being funny when I told Putin I didn't care? You can all go off and deal with alien politics all you want. I'm going home. Guraff is going to be doing something, and since you're all too easily distracted, I'm going to have to go deal with him myself."

((If you fight Guraff alone, you will die,)) Al said simply. Like it was some simple fact that I didn't already know.

"And your point is?"

"Okay, let's forget about your life for a minute. There are other things at play here than just Earth. If the Yeerks get Ssri'Kai help, it doesn't matter if we beat them here or not, they're going to be unstoppable," James answered.

"You don't want a galaxy ruled by the creatures who killed Cassie, do you?" Melissa said. I know it was a rhetorical question. I didn't care.

"The Yeerks didn't kill Cassie. _A_ Yeerk did. Just one of them. And that's the only one I care about. Nothing else means anything to me," I answered.

James sighed. "Ronnie, you're going to have to grow up a lot in the next two minutes or I'm going to get really ticked off."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I muttered.

"It means that if you don't shut up and realize that what you want in life doesn't matter, you and I are going to have a problem."

The others looked surprised. The ones with faces, anyway. I don't think they ever heard James talk to anyone like that before.

"Yeah, well, if you want to have a problem with me, fine. But it's your problem, not mine. My problem is a Yeerk named Guraff and how I'm going to kill him."

"You think you can kill him on your own? Here's a little news flash for you," James argued. "If you try and fight him, he'll take one look at you and then kill you without thinking about it. Tobias's Howler morph is by far the most powerful one any of us has, and even he can barely hold his own against Guraff. There's a reason they call him the God General. He's been killing life-long Andalite warriors since before we were born. He'll kill you as easily as squishing a fly."

"You say that like I care. You think I expect to survive? You're an idiot. I just want to take him with me."

"Yeah, well, tough luck, because you won't," James answered. "Not without our help. Right now, the Animorphs are going to go and get the Pemalite ship from the Nartec. If you don't want to come with us, then fine, you're not one of us. But if you're not one of us, then you can be damn sure that when you need help, we aren't going to be there to pull you out. You'll go home, you'll attack Guraff, and you'll be cut down before you can even introduce yourself and it won't be anything more to him a mild annoyance. You're going to die for nothing.

"Or you can shut up and realize that there's a whole hell of a lot more going on here than what you want and what you care about. We're not just dealing with the human race anymore, we're here to save the whole damn galaxy, and if you aren't on board with that, then I'll see you in hell. So are you going to come and hijack this ship, or are you going to say here being a little bitch?"

Everyone was staring at James now, mouths wide open. I'm not going to say I agree with what he said. But he was right about one thing. If I didn't get help, I'd die for nothing and Cassie wouldn't be avenged. I couldn't let that happen. And at least one of these people had a spine. I had to respect that.

"Fine. I'm in."


	2. Chapters 7 through 12

**CHAPTER 7**

**David**

I wasn't expecting problems with Ronnie. I definitely wasn't expecting a cursing, red-faced tirade from James. I wasn't expecting to be asked to meddle in Andalite politics by Vladimir Putin, I wasn't expecting Tri-I to take Jake, Marco, and Ax. I was not planning on stealing spaceships from mutant fish people or dealing with Ssri'Kai. I didn't think we'd be giving Jordan, Sara, and Kristina morphing powers. But none of that stuff, absolutely none of it, even all combined together, compared to the shock of seeing the Global Operations Director of Tri-I.

How was it possible? At first I thought maybe my eyes were playing ticks on me. I'm an old rat, maybe I was seeing things. But then he said his name. John Montresor. There was no way for me to pretend it was someone else. I knew John Montresor all my life, better than just about anyone knew him.

John Montresor was my father.

When the Yeerks attacked my home, he was taken and made into a Controller. The last conversation I had with him was form a pay phone, when the Yeerk in his head tried to get me to give myself up. He hadn't been in control then. The last time he was in control…I couldn't forget that. He didn't run from the Yeerks. He fought back, trying to protect me.

I thought he died during the war. When I came back to civilization, I searched for him but couldn't find anything. But I guess the man in charge of Tri-I knows how to keep secrets. Was my mother alive, too? Did they know I was still alive?

I knew the answer to that last one. I know my father. He would have used Tri-I's resources to try and find me. But not even Tri-I could manage that. He would have had to assume I was dead. Was he married to a different woman now? Did I have a half-brother or sister somewhere? Or a full sibling? Impossible to say. I needed to talk to him, but I couldn't do that; it might require me to explain too much.

I probably should have mentioned it to the others, but we really didn't have the time for that. No one needed the added distraction right now. We were flying, but not far. We would have to go far out into the ocean to get to the only known entrance to the Nartec city; farther than we could swim without a whole lot of trouble. But unlike in the old days, the Animorphs were no longer limited to morphs for transportation.

Jacques had his own private jet. He also had several boats. We were just going to borrow one of those. So we were in seagull morph, heading to the marina. ((Hey, James?)) I began privately.

((Yeah?)) He sounded calm again.

((I was just sort of wondering…))

((What that whole thing was about?)) he finished.

((Yeah, that.))

((It's just….I know how he feels, at least a little. I used to be a lot like him. When Jake first met me, I was so angry so much of the time…. I was angry at the whole world. I saw so many kids just get abandoned and ignored because of a disability they had no control over…people tossed under the rug and shut away or treated like garbage for something they were born with or an accident that wasn't their fault. I hated it, and I hated the people responsible. At the time, I blamed everyone. And I didn't stop hating it when I got my legs back.

((I know what it's like to be really helpless. I've felt it myself, and I've lived with people whose quality of life was just…Most people wouldn't have bothered living. I grew up with people who have never walked and never would. People who couldn't see or hear or speak. People who had no control over their bodies at all. Those are people who are helpless, and if they want to end their lives…well, they deserve the right to do that much.

((Ronnie's sad and he's angry, but he isn't helpless or hopeless, not like they were. He can heal, and he will if he gives himself time to do it. So when I saw him acting like that….it made me furious. He doesn't have the right to just give up on life and say that the rest of the world doesn't matter; not when he's still got it so good, and not when he can still do so much good with it.))

((Isn't this life his own, though? Shouldn't he be able to do what he wants with it?)) I asked, really more as a point of conversation than anything else.

((Most of the time, maybe. But Earth, the Andalite world, the Ssri'Kai and everyone else need him right now. He doesn't get to just quit because he's upset. We don't have that option. What's that thing the Andalites say? My life isn't my own when the people need it? I think that's pretty much spot on.))

((Another question, then,)) I decided. ((What's the deal with you and Kristina? You've been spending as much time around her as you do around Jordan. And before you start protesting, it'd be kind of hard not to know about you and Jordan. We could all hear you when you made calls to her late at night; the walls of that apartment are paper thin.))

((That's…..complicated.)) He paused, hoping I'd say something. I didn't. ((It's just….With Jordan, it just sort of …happened. I don't know, maybe I was feeling lonely, maybe she wanted to rebel against her mother…whatever it was, we really weren't planning on anything. And while I was on Omega, it made sense. But then I moved away and it got more complicated.))

((How so?))

((It's just…a long distance relationship requires a lot of commitment. You have to try really hard, with all your heart. And to be honest, I just don't know if either of us cares about the other that much. She was fun to spend some time with but that was never supposed to last. And then Kristina walked in and…well…things just sort of happened there, too.))

((Happened?)) I asked. ((As in past-tense, things have already happened?))

((A few minor things,)) James answered. ((Nothing physical. I've never even held her hand that I can remember. I wouldn't do that to Jordan. David….I just….It's different with Kristina. I care about her; more than I do Jordan, I think. But…I owe Jordan. I can't just run out on her because there's someone else… And I don't really know who I can even talk to about this.))

((You don't want to publicize the fact that you're thinking of breaking up with Rachel's sister because you like your head attached to your shoulders.))

((Pretty much. And now she's Tobias's sister, too. And Al's. Plus, Al has a thing for Kristina anyway…This is not going to end well for me, is it?))

((Not a chance. What do you plan to do?))

((Is fleeing an option?))

((Is there somewhere Tobias, Rachel, Jeanne, Al, and Jordan can't find you?))

((Probably not, no…))

((In that case…Man, James, I don't know.))

((Me neither, Davo. Me neither.))

It's weird, really. I always thought I knew James. We've got so much in common, and we always got along really well. I thought I knew him. But I guess there was a whole lot more to James than I always figured. I never thought he'd have that much anger inside of him. I couldn't help but wonder what else we didn't know about James. He kept more inside than I ever thought he did. Was he in danger of exploding?

I really hoped not. Not just because I considered him a friend, but because he seemed to be taking the role of our leader. He was the one who got Ronnie moving, at any rate, and he wasn't hesitating on decisions. But if he was hiding this much, what other secrets was he keeping?

**CHAPTER 8**

**Jeanne**

The good news for us was that my father owned several boats, which he kept in an expensive marina not too far from town. Ordinarily, the security would be considered top-rate, but it takes very specialized security to keep Animorphs out. It was simple enough for us to just land on one of my father's smaller boats.

I landed inside the small, steering cabin area - I will admit that I do not know much about nautical terms - and demorphed. The others followed the same procedure, and by the time everyone was demorphed, I had unfastened the rope that held us to the dock and we were out of the marina without difficulty. That was a nice change of pace.

"You know what's weird? For once, we're dressed appropriately," James commented. He was at least partially correct. While this may not have been exactly proper boating attire, our morphing outfits stuck out less here than they would have elsewhere If there had been anyone to see us, at least.

"Does morphing heal sun burn?" Melissa asked. "I tend to get burned pretty bad, especially if I'm out in the open like this."

"You'll be fine," James answered. "We need to start thinking of plans, though. I have no idea what we can expect from the Nartec city, so I think we'll just have to wing that."

((We could attempt a diplomatic approach?)) Al suggested. ((The Nartec seemed more or less amicable to our predecessors during their trip there. It was only a disagreement on the best method of extracting DNA that led to the unpleasantness.))

((That unpleasantness consisted of 'our predecessors' maiming and killing a couple dozen Nartec; even more, once you add in the Visser's help,)) David noted.

"Stealth?" I suggested.

((It is a possibility,)) David admitted. ((We would need to acquire some of the mutated animals native to the Nartec city, though.))

"That's one option, then.

"Here's an idea," Ronnie suggested. "We just go in there and if they don't give us the ship, why don't we we start popping little blue heads off until they do?"

"Because they have weapons. Pointy spears, swords, axes, machine guns, flamethrowers, and probably a few Dracon beams by this point," James answered.

"Maybe if we had a hostage…they have a queen, right?" Melissa suggested.

((Let's try to avoid that one,)) David advised. ((The problem with hostages is that, once you kill them, you're out of options.))

"I think it's pretty clear," James decided. "We'll try to do this quietly, in and out with the ship before anyone knows we're there. If they catch us, we'll try to talk our way out of it. And if that doesn't work, we do it by force."

I nodded. "That sounds acceptable."

One by one, everyone else nodded their agreement. I was surprised to realize that we were all accepting James's leadership without question. I see now why Jake recruited him in the first war. James really was a natural leader. I think it is his general attitude. He seems like just another soldier. Whatever the danger is, he gives the impression that he will be there with you. It was not something I was used to in a leader.

With Jake, it was a different sort of feel. It was very clear when he was giving an order because it would feel like something was being requested of you. I trusted Jake's orders because I knew he would not give me an order he himself would not obey. But there was always the sense that I was the one carrying it out while he oversaw me and did his own task. Like two friends working on a project together.

It was also very different from Tobias. If Jake's orders were like a friend's, then Tobias's were like a father's. He gave an order and expected it to be obeyed. Orders from Tobias were very clearly orders. At the same time, though, I sensed something different from the Alphamorphs. They had a sense that, no matter what their orders, if they were in trouble, Tobias would save them. What had once been a vague intuition of that had smacked me in the face when James told Kristina, Jordan, and Sara that everything would be fine hen Tobias returned from his honeymoon. As if he could stop the whole Yeerk empire by his mere presence. The thing is that I think the Alphamorphs believed it. A style of leadership different form Jake's, but at least as effective.

From James, it was a different feel entirely. Whatever the order was, James intended to do it himself, and we were welcome to help him out; or at least, that was the impression. He did not give orders so much as suggest courses of action we should take. From what I read, that is much how Jake was at the beginning of the First War. I suppose it should be no surprise, then, that we did what James suggested.

"Once we've got the ship, I think we need to swing by the Andalite homeworld," James continued. "I don't like Putin, but I don't think he's the type to just play games. If he says the Yeerks have a finger in things there, I think he's probably telling the truth. Someone needs to investigate things there. Al's a natural choice, and I want to send David with him. No one should go without backup, and if anyone is going to be able to outmaneuver Yeerks in politics, I think it's probably him."

"That all makes sense to me," I agreed. I might have been a good choice to combat the Yeerks as well, but David would work better with Al than I would. And my talents would come in handy in Ssri'Kai space.

((Yeah, I think that's the best choice,)) David nodded.

((I agree. David and I should be able to handle anything that we find.))

"Just as long as I don't have to go," Ronnie muttered.

"I want to go where the Ssri'Kai are - I want to see how tough they really are. Let the kids handle the Andalites," Melissa agreed.

"Alright then," James continued. "Al, David, I don't know how long we'll be in Ssri'Kai space. If the election's done before we're finished disrupting the Yeerk stuff there, Tobias and Rachel will be back from their honeymoon, so I guess you could call them for a ride."

((We will be capable of handling it, Al assured him.

((Andalte politics aren't dangerous,)) David added. ((Right, Al?))

Al chose not to answer that.

**CHAPTER 9**

**James**

We spent about three hours relaxing on the boat before Al informed us that we were at approximately the right location. We were about to morph when I realized we had a problem. "Guys? What do we do with the boat?"

((You know what, James? That's a very good question,)) David answered, completely not helping.

Jeanne took a phone out of the steering cabin thingy place and dialed. "Papa? Some friends and I borrowed one of your boats. I am afraid we will not be able to return it ourselves. You will have to use the boat's GPS chip to locate it. I trust you will not have too great of a problem with that?" She was silent for a few moments. "Of course, Papa. We will be." Another pause. "And I you."

That settled, we started to morph. The best way to do this seemed like it was to morph partway on the boat and then flop into the water from there. We all had various morphs that would work. Most of us had used dolphins before, and they were easy enough for the others to master. I don't think I ever morphed mine before, but that was fine. Morphing wasn't difficult.

This one was weird, though. My legs fused together and became my tail before anything else changed. And I'll tell you this: merfolk look like horrible abominations in real life. Also, having a blowhole is not nearly as cool as it sounds. That appeared on my back and let me tell you that breathing through one of those things without the dolphin instincts to make it seem normal is really, really uncomfortable. It's kind of like having someone blow in your ear. And that somebody is you.

That was the point at which I realized I was in danger of beaching myself on the boat. I was leaning over the side, so I heaved my weight forward and fell into the water. I sank a whole lot faster than I expected to and almost lost focus, but the more I concentrated on being a dolphin the better I felt. My body got used to the water, and that helped me to calm down. I wasn't really sure when I finished, but suddenly the dolphin mind kicked in. Time to play Find the Mutant Fish People!

((Everyone ready? I want to get started,)) I called.

((Done,)) David responded.

((I am finished as well,)) Al confirmed.

((Finished,)) Jeanne added.

((All fished up,)) Melissa answered.

((Mammal,)) was Ronnie's response.

((Then let's swim! Al, where is this place?))

((There should be an entrance somewhere in that cliff face ahead of us,)) Al answered. ((Utilize your echolocation.))

((I bet I can find it first,)) David responded, jetting ahead.

((Yeah, right. I'm going to find it,)) I argued, pushing past him.

Ronnie sighed in our heads. ((You're both wrong. It's going to be me.

((I'm totally going to find it first,)) answered Melissa.

((I believe you are mistaken, Melissa. It will be me,)) Jeanne argued.

((You are all incorrect. It shall be me,)) Al laughed.

We swam around like idiots for a few minutes until I echolocated a cave with what must have been plants around it; just what we were looking for. I found it. Not David, no matter what he might tell you.

((Found a cave,)) David called.

((I saw it first,)) I argued. I swam up and poked my nose inside, firing off an echo locative burst. Definitely the right cave. It was long, twisting, and if I guessed right, ended in a blank wall. ((This is it. Let's grab a lungful and go.))

We surfaced, took a few deep breaths, and dove again, right for the cave. I couldn't be sure how long this cave was, or if we'd have enough air. Jake once told me the story about this place. He wasn't sure about coming here the first time, and he always had a bad feeling about it. I felt pretty uneasy too, but that didn't matter. This was where the ship was, this was where we had to go. It was just as simple as that.

The cave's darkness was probably the kind you'd call 'oppressive' or crushing, but our echolocation helped with that. It wasn't the same as seeing, and it wasn't as good, but it helped to remind us the world was there. When you can't see a thing, and you can't even feel the familiar pull of gravity, any reminder that the world still exists is good to have. Thanks to that echolocation, we saw the end of the tunnel before we bumped into it.

((So how do we get in?)) Melissa asked.

In response, Ronnie swam forward and poked the wall with his nose. A thin line of light so bright it almost blinded me appeared. It grew into a rectangle, then a square, then a circle. Even brighter, greenish squiggles of light forced their way out of the circle and formed weird, rotating coils. They gathered in the center, joined together, and then split apart like a mouth opening. There was a tunnel behind them.

((That was….weird,)) Melissa commented.

((This place gets a whole lot weirder from what I hear,)) David answered. ((Let's keep moving, I don't know how long I can hold my breath.))

We swam through and the 'mouth' of the tunnel closed behind us. That wasn't too much of a problem, though. The surface of the water wasn't too far above us, so we could grab a breath. There was light coming from somewhere, and I could make out a muddy river bank.

((The Nartec are strongest in water,)) Jeanne began. ((We might be best serviced on land.))

((You heard the lady,)) I told everyone, swimming over to the bank. I demorphed and climbed up to dry land, with everyone else following. I really wasn't prepared for what I saw around me. The other Animorphs had described it, but you really can't imagine it.

We were in a cavern bigger than….probably bigger than a lot of towns. This thing was miles across, even if the whole thing was open, I wouldn't have been able to see the other side. It all appeared to be natural, but so did that cave wall we came though, so who could say?

The whole place was filled with ships. Old wooden warships, submarines, modern battleships, ancient wrecks and even an aircraft carrier. And, if the stories from the other Animorphs were true, these ships had crews, dead bodies of their real crewmembers, stuffed and preserved. I didn't have any desire to investigate those claims.

"Alright, let's try to do this quietly," I decided.

Al sighed slightly in my head. ((I am afraid it is a little late for that, James.))

**CHAPTER 10**

**Al**

We were not alone. The dim lighting would hide our observers from human eye sight, but not from that of an Andalite. There were several blue-skinned humanoids crouching in the shadows, pointing primitive projectile weapons at us. ((I believe they intend to shoot us.))

((If they wanted to shoot, they'd shoot,)) David argued.

"Then perhaps they want to talk," Jeanne answered. She turned in the general direction of the sentries. "We mean you no harm."

((We just want to steal your ship,)) David added in what I hope was private thought speak.

"You will come peacefully," one of the humanoids called. I could only assume these were the Nartec. They looked almost human, but their necks possessed gill slits, and their eyes were especially large. They were like one of the many parodies of alien races I saw in human movies., just ordinary human beings with makeup. But I knew that they were not human. Not anymore, at least, though from Prince Aximili's reports they most likely once were.

"That was the plan," James answered, holding up his hands. "We're unarmed."

"You are shape shifters. You are never unarmed," one of the Nartec called back.

"At least they catch on quick," Melissa shrugged.

"What weapons do they have?" Ronnie asked.

((I believe they are called crossbows,)) I answered.

"That won't stop a polar bear."

((No, but it'll definitely keep you from living long enough to morph one,)) David answered. ((Let's just go with them for now. If they were going to kill us, they would have tried that already, so they must be willing to talk.))

"David is most likely correct," Jeanne agreed.

((I think so too,)) I added.

Melissa nodded. Ronnie sighed and turned to James. "So we're going to go with them?"

"You sound disappointed," James responded. "I thought your problem was with Guraff. You saying you want to fight some Nartec?"

"Good point."

The Nartec formed up around us and lead us between wrecked ships on a long trek towards their city. It appeared to be built entirely of pieces from wrecked ships, cobbled together with whatever was at hand. There were large, defensive guns mounted here and there. Perhaps they were active and placed there purposely, perhaps they were just decorations or maybe they were just there at random. The city was by no means beautiful, but it was unique and it was functional.

As we walked, more and more Nartec joined us, surrounding us. Many aimed weapons at us, and that made me question if perhaps the other Animorphs had underestimated the damage they did. But some seemed excited, even pleased to see us. Perhaps they just liked seeing strange, new life forms.

We were led at last to a large, pyramidal structure. There was something glowing a faint green color at the top of the pyramid, and there appeared to be hundreds of cables leading from the source of the glow to buildings around the pyramid.

It is humorous, the paranoia that humans have about pyramids. Some are confused that a similar style of architecture appeared on two opposite sides of their planet, and some suggest alien involvement. The truth of the matter is that it is a very sensible structure and almost every civilized race in the galaxy has built pyramids of its own. So far, my people have elected not to explain that to the humans. It was an attempt at a sense of humor.

I do not think anyone understood the joke.

The guards marched us up some steps and into the pyramid. There was a large hallway in front of us, with a velvet carpet on the floor. At the far end, there was a throne with one of the Nartec on it. She looked much like a human woman, with blue flesh, webbed hands, gills, and extremely large eyes. ((She is a queen,)) I reminded the others. ((I believe the appropriate courtesy is to bow to her.))

I lowered my upper half, and the others bowed as well. We looked at each other for a few moments, then James spoke. "Um...Greetings, great queen of the Nartec. My name is James. Uh...we're from America -"

"Speak for yourself," Jeanne muttered.

"You are the Animorphs, aren't you?" the Queen asked. "You are different from the first Animorphs that came."

((Yes. Yes we are,)) David admitted. ((We aren't the ones who attacked your people five years ago.)) Privately to us, he added, ((We might be able to play on the fact that we aren't the same ones. Maybe it'll get us some help.))

His plans were immediately reined when the queen responded, "A pity. I was hoping to thank them."

"Thank them?" Jeanne asked. "What for?"

"Five years ago, they came here and caused quite a stir. The six of them inflicted incredible casualties on the former Queen's elite guard. Their confidence in Queen Soco was shaken – enough so that I could gain their support and have my older sister...removed...from the equation. So, what brings you shapeshifters here?"

((How do you know the term 'Animorph'?)) I asked.

"We collect much information from the ships we bring into our collection. Magazines are sometimes intact, as are electronic records. It would be impossible not to know about the Animorphs. So when four humans, an animal, and an Andalite come to visit, I can only assume that you are affiliated with the other Animorphs. Why are you here?"

"That's a little complicated," Melissa answered. She looked at the rest of us questioningly. How much to tell this queen?

"We need a ship," Ronnie answered. He was apparently not in the mood for subtlety. "A powerful ship. Big, green, looks like Snoopy. You have it and we need it. Now."

The queen smiled. "You aren't here for games. I like that. Your name, Animorph?"

"You first."

"I like that a lot. The games that the nobles like to play bore me. It's like catching a squid just to get one to introduce herself. My name is Roca. And yours?"

"Ronnie Chambers."

"Ronnie Chambers," Queen Roca repeated. "A nice sound to it, if a little odd." She sighed. "We have the ship you seek. It was quite the find, and I'm sure you understand that we cannot just give it to you. It is far more advanced than anything we have ever found before."

((Then I guess we need to start making a deal,)) David decided. ((And I'm sure we have something you want.))

**CHAPTER 11**

**Melissa**

Queen Roca decided that she didn't want to spend all day sitting on her throne, so her guards led us to a private audience chamber. It was actually a pretty nice place. I lounged on a velveteen couch. Al and Ronnie decided to stand, though I don't think Al had much choice. James took a chair and David decided to sit on his shoulder.

"Do we have anything to trade?" James asked. "I mean...unless they're looking for good spandex, we've got nothing."

"We have information, I am sure," Jeanne answered.

"When she gets in here, we'll have a hostage," Ronnie added. "I'm sure that ship isn't worth her life."

((I believe we are not authorized to hold foreign leaders as hostages,)) Al responded.

"Jake doesn't need to know," I answered quickly, half joking. I wasn't really all that keen on the idea myself. But when I'm nervous, I just dive headfirst into things. I really didn't know what we had to go on. They probably had all the information they cared about, if they knew about the Animorphs.

((There's something they need more than anything else,)) David told us. ((Remember the first time the Animorphs came here? What did the Nartec want from them?))

((Their DNA,)) Al answered.

((Exactly. Roca seems more reasonable than I think Soco was. She might listen when we tell her there are better ways of getting DNA. They need it to keep their population alive. So we give them all of our human DNA, they give us the Pemalite ship – or maybe just let us borrow it for a little.))

"How much DNA do we have to pass around?" James asked.

((I believe we all have some human DNA. Enough for a sizeable sample, at least. I believe the trade will be acceptable,)) Al assured him.

"Can we get DNA from you and David?" I asked. "Your human bodies are morphs, after all."

((While that is true, the bodies still possess DNA. I do not think the fact that they are morphs will adversely affect the use of the DNA.))

"You're the genius here," James shrugged.

((To be fair, my...advanced intelligence...is really only in the area of technology, James. I am not a geneticist.))

"More of one than the rest of us," I shrugged. "You're the only scientist type we've got."

"Not exactly," James pointed out. "When I was crashing with the Andalites, I lived with a xenobiologist and a doctor. I know a thing or two about science."

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" Ronnie muttered.

((Aren't we all?)) David replied. ((I hear someone coming. Let's try to keep it down.))

A few moments later, the door opened. Two burly Nartec came in, followed by the queen, followed by another pair of Nartec. The guards were carrying weapons we recognized very easily – Dracon beams. Two thoughts jumped to my mine. Either they had salvaged these from somewhere or they were working with the Yeerks. And if it was the second one...

"You all look so tense," Roca smiled at us. "Please, relax. I prefer my negotiations to be as pleasurable as possible."

((James always looks that way,)) David responded. ((I think it has something to do with the rod in his -))

"David? Two words. Mouse. Trap," James responded.

I raised an eyebrow at David. A minute ago, he was acting like some sort of professional about this. Now he was making jokes.

((We want her to relax, too,)) David explained to me. ((If she lets her guard down, it'll help us. So let's let her think we're just idiots.))

"I could see if some of my surgeons could remove that for him," Roca offered, still smiling. "You wish to discuss trade? Let us discuss it, then. This ship you want is undoubtedly the greatest find we have ever had. We have not even unlocked a tenth of its mysteries, and already it amazes our greatest scientists. Comparing it to something your people or mine created would be like comparing a whale to krill."

((You may not be pleased with what you find on the ship,)) Al began. ((There are no weapons, for one thing.))

"No weapons? On a ship that advanced?"

"The Pemalites didn't fight wars," James explained. "They spent all their time having parties and making robots. They were eventually exterminated by a species called the Howlers – they partied in a different way. The Pemalites had no weapons. None. So if you're thinking that that ship might help give you a bit of a military advantage when you go to conquer us land-fish, you're mistaken."

"What makes you think that I-"

"The previous Animorphs told us about Queen Soco's plans," Jeanne interrupted. "It had the sound of a prophecy about it. You may be different from her, but you have the same ambition, am I right?"

"Let us set aside the question of weapons for now," Roca said evasively. "It is a source of power like nothing ever before seen. It could power our entire city running only at one tenth of its capacity."

((If you utilized your most abundant resource, you could generate even more power,)) Al answered. ((Surely you know of the potential of hydroelectric power. With all of the water around you, you could generate an unfathomable amount of energy. If you combined that with some simple geothermal procedures, you would have unlimited energy for your city, more than even the ship could produce.))

"But my people do not have the knowledge to build such things," Roca argued. "That is useless to us."

((I could easily show you how to do it,)) Al answered.

"Doesn't that break that Seerow's Kindness law you people love?" Ronnie pointed out.

((By no means. Humans have hydroelectric plants, as well as geothermal technology. It is not a violation to give aliens the technology of other aliens. The law relates only to Andalite technology.))

((So much for looking like idiots,)) David muttered privately. ((Could we all just once stick to a plan?)) To Roca, he asked, ((What else, then?))

"We have no idea what the ship is truly capable of or what we could really learn from it. There is no telling how much we could lose if we traded it away."

"From what I heard, your people only have a few generations to live," I pointed out. "I remember something about you not having enough genetic material or whatever to sustain yourselves. If you don't get some more, it won't matter how much technology you have. This place'll just be one big graveyard that no one ever visits."

"What is your point, girl?"

"That ship can't give you the DNA you need. We can," I answered. "That's the offer. Our DNA for the Pemalite ship."

"You think that the four of you would be enough to sustain our population? I think not. Perhaps with what we learn from the ship, we can gain the power to go and harvest from the surface-dwellers ourselves."

((It wouldn't just be their DNA,)) David pointed out. ((The Andalite and I have human forms. You can use that DNA, too.))

"And I know a few things you could do to the DNA to get some more variety out of it," James added. "I lived with the Andalites for a bit, and one of them studied humans. I'm sure you have the tech to make the alterations you need. From the six of us, there are over a million combinations you could get with a few little tweaks. Enough to keep your people going for another couple centuries, at least. I'd say that's probably worth the ship."

"We would also like to show you a way of extracting DNA that is superior to the technique you use," Jeanne added. "One that does not kill the donor."

Roca smiled again, wider this time. "Oh, we already have a better way." She turned to one of her guards. "Summon the head geneticist."

**CHAPTER 12**

**Ronnie**

One of the guards left to get the scientist. Roca turned back to us. "We've been receiving scientific journals for the last few decades explaining more advanced techniques for the extraction process. My sister was unwilling to adapt to those methods, but it seems much more efficient to me."

"It is good to see that you are more reasonable than your predecessor," Jeanne replied.

Our people are really starting to take up a bigger role in the universe,)) David added. ((With people like you in charge, there's definitely a chance for some sort of peace between us. We're sort of engaged in a pretty major war right now. It'd be good to know we've got allies in the sea rather than enemies.))

"Friendship with the surface dwellers...an interesting prospect," Roca agreed. "Certainly something worth exploring."

A thin Nartec entered the room, followed by the guard. "You summoned me, your highness?"

Roca pointed at James, Jeanne, David, Al, and Melissa. "Take these five to the primary medical bay and extract their DNA. Use the new procedures, we do not want to harm them. The yellow-haired one and the blue one will show you what to do with the DNA."

"What about Ronnie?" Melissa asked.

I tensed up. Whatever this fish woman was planning, she wasn't going to find it easy. I was here to kill Yeerks, not Nartec, but if she got between me and the slugs...

"I rather like this one," she responded.

"This one's name is Ronnie," I growled.

"Yes, I believe you mentioned that," she smiled. I felt like hitting her in the face. "Not all the periodicals we find on the ships we bring in are scientific in nature. Some are much more...entertaining. Some have their own means for the transfer of genetic material. And it is thanks to these that we learned that humans and Nartec make such transfers in the same way. I think I would like to try it with a human."

((Wait...is she saying...)) David trailed off.

"That's kind of..." James added.

"I do not think..." Jeanne agreed.

"You're screwed up." Melissa said flatly.

"Not happening," I told Roca.

((I do not understand,)) Al concluded.

((Anyone else want to field this one?)) David asked. We all turned and looked at him. He sighed. ((Fine. Al...um...how do humans share DNA.))

((Through mating.))

((What did Roca just say?))

((That she...but that would mean...))

((Yeah.))

((That is...))

((Yeah.))

Roca laughed. "You are all taking this far too seriously, you know. It's just a bit of fun." She leaned forward and met my eyes. "And besides, are you saying you aren't wondering what it would be like at this very moment?"

"No, I'm not." That was true. I was thinking about Cassie, and what she'd say. If she was here...well, Cassie isn't a violent person, but if she was here, Roca would be bleeding from her jaw and lying on the floor right now.

But Cassie wasn't here.

I couldn't do it. Not now, maybe not ever. It wasn't just that she wasn't a human. It was the thought of being with someone other than Cassie. I couldn't do it. It was too soon. It'd be like spitting on her grave. There was no way...it was too soon to move on to someone else.

"That isn't going to happen," I said flatly.

"No? That would be a shame. Perhaps..."

"Perhaps what?" James asked, an edge in his voice.

"Perhaps this deal is not the best one to make after all. Maybe you should keep your DNA and I should keep my ship."

James appeared to be rubbing his hand over his mouth, like he was thinking. But from where I was sitting, I could see his lips moving. David, sitting on his shoulder, was apparently listening to whatever he was whispering.

((We've got two options here,)) David said privately to the rest of us. ((Option one, we could kidnap Roca and hold her hostage until they give us the ship. That one comes with some pretty obvious risks. Or...))

I raised an eyebrow. He knew what it meant. _Or what?_

((James thinks that you might have to play along, Ronnie. Just for a little bit. We'll sneak off, find the ship, and rescue you while the queen and her people are distracted. We won't let it get too far.))

I shook my head slightly to the left and right. No way was I going to play along. Roca sat there with an amused smile on her face. She knew we were discussing the situation.

((Roca isn't an idiot,)) David reminded us. ((I think she probably took precautions before we got here, in case we tried something like taking her hostage. I think she'd be prepared for that. Maybe we could put a stop to whatever plan she's got if we knew what it was, but we'd need more time. Ronnie, I really don't think there's much choice here.))

Again, I shook my head, more visibly this time. I was not going to entertain this twisted fish lady's fantasies. I was not going to be a part of it.

I saw James mouth something. David turned and looked at him. James nodded. David sighed. ((Alright then. Ronnie, James is telling me to tell you that he is not going to let this mission fail because you're being stubborn. He didn't want to have to play this card, but here it is. Not too long ago, when Tobias was busy with something else, he put James in charge of us for a mission. As far as I'm concerned, and as far as the Alphamorphs are concerned, that makes James our leader for this mission, too. And whether you want to be difficult or not, you're an Alphamorph, too. So if you don't play along, he's going to make it an order.))

I turned and met James's eyes. "Is that a fact?"

He nodded. "Yeah, that's a fact. You came on this mission, Ronnie. That makes you an Animorph – and an Alphamorph. And we aren't just a bunch of kids anymore. The Animorphs are an army, and you're going to follow orders."

I backed down before because I respected James. But now he was trying to pull rank on me? Like hell that was going to happen. If I was an Animorph, then I was equal to all the other Animorphs. I wasn't going to back off just because some time in the past, Tobias let James lead a little mission.

"And if I don't do what you say? What're you going to do if I don't obey you?" I asked.

"We're going to go about our business," James answered simply. "We're getting this ship. And if you don't want to help us out, fine. We'll find something else to trade Queen Roca for it. But if that happens, then you're not coming with us. We're going to leave you here. If we fail in the end, maybe Guraff will come down here and maybe you'll get your shot at him. But don't count on that. Either you're with us, or we're leaving you here."

Would they really leave me here? I saw in James's eyes that he would. I didn't care what happened to the rest of the galaxy. He did. And he wasn't going to let me get in his way. Slowly, I turned to face Roca. "What exactly do you have in mind?"


	3. Chapters 13 through 18

**CHAPTER 13**

**David**

We followed the scientist out of the meeting chamber. I didn't know how much time we had before Ronnie...well, he'd probably snap and break her neck or something. Ronnie is a big guy. We needed to get the ship before he did something crazy. Originally, we really did plan to make the trade. But now that Roca wanted Ronnie, that deal was going to have to change.

So it was plan B now. Find the ship, steal it, and get Ronnie out of a sticky situation. First, we had to slip away from the scientists. That was not going to be much of a problem. We've busted out of high-security Yeerk prisons, countless traps, and high school. A scientist with five guards was not going to be a problem.

When we were outside of the main temple/palace, James whispered to me. "Let's do this thing."

((Al, go,)) I relayed.

((Excuse me,)) Al said to the scientist. ((I am afraid that I have a bit of an embarrassing problem. You see, I must remove waste from my body, but your facilities are not adequate. I am afraid that I must relieve myself somewhere out of sight.))

"If you must," the scientist replied, nodding to what looked like a bunch of half-cooked spaghetti noodles sticking out of the ground. "I am afraid I will have to send a guard with you, though."

The guard who followed Al did not look very happy about this, but he didn't complain. I took the opportunity to slip away myself. People don't pay very much attention to rats, even when they talk. I scampered down James's back and scurried over to where Al and his guard had gone.

When I got behind the noodles, I found the guard lying on the ground with a crescent-shaped bruise in the side of his head. ((I acquired him so that I could knock him out quietly,)) Al explained. I nodded and put a paw on the Nartec's skin.

After about ten seconds, I was done acquiring him. ((Quoth the Power Rangers: it's morphin' time.))

((I do not understand.))

((I didn't expect you to,)) I answered as I began to grow. It was weirdly like morphing a human, but also very, very different. All the fur sucked into my skin, which had turned blue and oily. My eyes grew. My tail went the way of my fur. That was when the growing started.

While I morphed, Al stripped the unconscious Nartec of his clothing and weapons, which consisted of a loose robe of some material we don't have where I live, a large, steel mace, and a familiar-looking submachine gun. I believe it was some sort of STEN. Just perfect for this task. Quick, a little on the quiet side, and stylish. I used to be really into guns back when I was human. I lost touch with them, and it's impossible to catch up after years and years of no contact, but I still had a special place in my heart for some of the classics.

When I finished morphing, I pulled on the robe, picked up my mace, and cradled the STEN in my hands. It felt good. Very good. ((Alright Al, let's get this show on the road.))

The queen would be...occupied...now, so we could reasonably assume that no one was going to interrupt her. That meant that this was probably the best time for what we were about to do. I followed Al back to the group and fell in with the other guards. They wouldn't notice anything. I kept my head down, playing it off like I had been freaked out by what I saw a few moments ago.

((Have you been able to learn anything of note from the Pemalite ship?)) Al asked the scientist.

"Very little," the scientist sighed. "Unfortunately, it is so far beyond our own technology that we can't make sense of most of it. We have found exactly one practical use for it so far. I hope we can learn more, but her Highness is grossly overestimating its value to us."

((I can imagine. That ship is far beyond anything even my people have ever created. It is a work of technology that might be unrivaled in all of the galaxy. What use did you find for it?))

"The ship's sensors informed us that our usual source of light also causes potentially harmful radiation. We have removed those light sources from the upper-class quarters and are using the ship as a power source for artificial lights. It is a glorified battery right now."

((The palace is in the center of the upper-class part of the city,)) I remarked to James. ((Do you think you saw it there.))

James shrugged.

((David, I noticed a great number of cables leading towards the top of the pyramid – and something glowing at the top. I think that is where the ship is.))

((I say we check that out. The rest of you?)) I asked. James, Jeanne, and Melissa nodded slightly. It was go time.

Without warning, I turned and swung my mace into the leg of the Nartec next to me. He fell to the ground, clutching his side in pain. At the same time, Al whipped his tail forwards, smashing the flat of the blade into the side of another Nartec's head.

James tackled the Nartec nearest to him, pinning him to the ground so that he couldn't use his weapons at all. Jeanne kicked the legs out from another Nartec and then casually slammed her heel into his throat. He stopped moving after that. Dead or unconscious I had no idea. But I knew that Jeanne was trained as an assassin – trained to kill.

Melissa was not trained in any way. She just kicked the last Nartec between the legs. His eyes bulged as he fell to the ground, holding himself and whimpering. ((You know, Melissa,)) I said, ((I just broke a dude's leg with a mace without any kind of warning, and even _I_ think that was kind of a cheap shot.)) At the same time, I leveled my STEN at the scientist. A slap of Al's tail made sure the Nartec James was struggling with stopped fighting. He made sure to do the same for the other guards.

"Please, don't kill me!" the scientist wailed.

"Where's the Pemalite ship?" James responded.

The scientist didn't answer, but his eyes flickered over James's shoulder, at the pyramid. We were right. But there was a crowd gathering now. We had to move FAST. That was part of the reason we kept the scientist alive.

I walked around behind the Nartec scientist and pressed the gun's barrel against his back. James, Jeanne, Melissa, and Al helped themselves to some weapons from the other guards even though probably only Jeanne knew how to operate them with any sort of skill. ((If anyone gets in our way, we kill him,)) I announced.

"And then we start firing into the crowd," James added. The crowd decided it was a good idea to scatter then. "Walk fast," he advised the scientist. "We're short on time, patience, and bullets."

**CHAPTER 14**

**Jeanne**

The crowd was soon replaced by armed warriors, but they did not approach us. We had their head geneticist as a hostage – they knew how important he was. They would not take the risk of us killing him. So while our enemies lurked, aiming weapons at us from doors, windows, and alleyways, they did not get in our way.

We climbed the steps of the pyramid, with two guns always pointed at our hostage. We were not going to take any more chances than we had to. I had no intention of killing him, but honestly I do not know about the others. I believe David would have pulled the trigger without regret. James...maybe. Melissa would not unless she panicked. And Al... I was just unsure about the Alphamorphs altogether.

We Omegamorphs have certain rules that we must obey. Sometimes, we bend these rules and sometimes we break them altogether. But we do that only in the most extreme circumstances. We did not morph sentient beings. We did not kill innocents or take hostages. Not if there was any other way. The Alphamorphs were different. I do not know if that is a good difference or a bad one, but it is a very clear one.

The ship was at the top of the pyramid, where one might expect it to be. There was some sort of metal framework around it, with hundreds of cables attached to it, feeding off of the ship's power. It was green, about ninety meters long, and shaped like a cartoonish dog. "Huh...it really does look like Snoopy," Melissa commented. "I always thought Jake was making that part up."

"Al, Jeanne, you get to work getting the ship in order. David, keep your gun on the scientist and see if you can get him to help," James ordered. "Melissa and I are going to go bail Ronnie out of his jam. We're not going to have a lot of time. Battle morph, Melissa."

Melissa nodded and began to morph to panther while James went lion. Al and I had no trouble finding a way into the ship. The access panel on the outer hull was very well lit. It was a small, rectangular panel with a yellow light bulb above it and a series of small, unlabeled buttons below it. I pressed my hand to the rectangle. The light flashed twice, blindly bright. Then, numbers appeared on the buttons below the rectangle. Remembering the story the Animorphs had told me about this ship, I pressed the number six.

The side of the ship slid open and David, Al, the scientist, and I entered. The inside of the ship was amazing to see. There was green and purple grass all over the floor in amazing patterns. Some looked like they were made by children, some by fantastic artists. There was river that went through the middle of the ship. And everywhere, there were machines that I assume were toys of some kind.

In the center was a large tree that I had been told was the control bridge. "The framework around this ship can be moved," I said to the scientist. He nodded. "Remove it, then."

David marched the scientist outside while Al and I interacted with the ship. There was not much work to do. The security system was...that does not count as a security system. The ship was more than happy to take us wherever we wanted to go. The problem was that no one had been as far as Ssri'Kai space before. We had no idea where to go.

Al came up with the solution, though. He just told the ship to locate Erek, which it did in a matter of seconds. Pinpointing the Ssri'Kai homeworld was as simple as that. It was nice to have something simple for once.

David returned with the scientist. ((Framework's gone. We're free to go as soon as we get James, Melissa, and Ronnie.))

Five minutes later, James, Melissa, Ronnie, and Queen Roca – who had been tied up and gagged – entered the ship. "Turns out people don't like shooting at you when you've got their leader as a shield," Ronnie muttered. "What now?"

((Now, we send these two out the front door and get going,)) James answered, demorphing. ((Al, can a bullet get through this ship?)) Al laughed. That was probably the first time I heard him do that. I suppose that was a good enough answer.

David marched the scientist out at gun point. Ronnie roughly shoved the queen out. The ship closed up behind them. ((Computer, take fastest safe route to location designated 'Andalite Homeworld',)) Al ordered.

((Sure thing! Would you like a refreshing beverage while you wait?))

((No thank you.))

We waited for a few minutes. "When is it going to start moving?" Melissa asked. "We're sort of in a rush here..."

I had an idea. "Computer, please change the walls to transparent."

The walls of the ship disappeared. We were no longer in the Nartec city. In fact, we were no longer under water. We were almost out of Earths' atmosphere in a matter of seconds. I had no idea how fast this ship was going to be. This was exponentially faster than anything I had ever seen or heard of. It was impossible.

Then, suddenly, everything was gone. Everything turned white. It was blinding at first. We had entered Z-space seamlessly. It was incredible! "Computer, turn the walls opaque."

With this speed, we'd reach the Andalite Homeworld in a matter of hours! Maybe a day at most. ((I must study this,)) Al muttered, probing the computer with his mind. ((This is...there is no word to describe it.))

"Fast?" Melissa suggested.

((That may have to suffice,)) Al decided.

"Okay, we don't have bunches of time to prepare, so let's get this down right now," James decided. "Al, David – we aren't there to interfere with Andalite politics. You're only going there to make sure that other people don't interfere too. I don't know what this job will mean, or if it'll mean anything at all, but just...be careful."

((Not a problem,)) David responded, back to his rat self.

((I wish I had more time to study this ship...))

"Plenty of time for that later," James responded. "For now, get a good meal and have a little fun. I've got that sinking feeling that this next part won't be a whole lot of fun."

**CHAPTER 15**

**James**

It was a whole lot of fun on the Pemalite ship. I've been on a few starships in my time. The Blade ship, the Reliquary, a few Andalite vessels, and none of them was what you'd call a fun trip. But those ships are all designed for blowing very big holes in each other, and in the unfortunate people inside of them. The Pemalite ship was a toy, and it was a whole lot more fun to be in than the others. Not to mention more comfortable.

I know Al had a blast. He spent the whole trip hooked into the ship's computer, trying to learn everything he could before we got to the Andalite homeworld. David scurried around, climbing on the machinery and doing rat stuff. Melissa and Ronnie tried getting some practice with Jeanne, sparring in their battle morphs. Only a little, though -the ship wouldn't allow them to do any serious damage to each other.

As for me, I relaxed. The ship had enough comfy chairs for me to sit in, and it was capable of picking up television signals from Earth. I asked Al about that and he said something about looping it through the Chee's sensors, re-routing it to the ship, and re-broadcasting it on the screen in front of me, but I really didn't care. I had food, I had a comfy spot to curl up in, I had TV. I was a happy Animorph. It was even nicer than being back home, really. More space.

I was relaxing when Jeanne came to me and gave me a suggestion that kind of scared me. "We should call Tobias and Rachel to let them know what is going on. And see if we can make contact with Jake, Marco, and Aximili."

"Maybe," I admitted. "But we don't want Tri-I intercepting our transmissions to Jake, Marco, and Ax. And I'm not wild about the idea of interrupting Tobias and Rachel…"

((You'll be safely in Ssri'Kai space by the time Tobias and Rachel can do anything about it,)) David reminded me. ((Rachel will probably calm down by the time you get back.))

"Yeah, alright. Al, can you try to reach Ax's iHolo? And encrypt the transmission or something?"

((With this ship, that is literally child's play, James,)) Al assured me. It only took a matter of seconds before we had a life-sized hologram of Ax's head and shoulders floating before us. A very high-quality hologram, I'll add. I bet if my eyesight was better, I could have seen every fur on his face.

((Hello. How is your trip going?)) he asked. Sure, we were encrypted, but we weren't going to take any chances with Tri-I.

"Going good," I answered. "Is Jake around? We needed to check in with him about things."

((Absolutely.)) A few moments later, Jake's upper parts replaced Ax's.

"Hey guys. What's up?"

"Not much," I responded. "We got started alright. A minor hang-up with getting the rental car, but we got that all straightened out. Ronnie isn't in the best mood, though." It wasn't that I was tattling on Ronnie or anything like that. I just wasn't sure how to deal with him. I knew that I couldn't just bully him all the time. Jake was better at this than I was, I figured he'd know something.

"He doesn't really want to go, does he?" Jake asked.

"Not particularly," Ronnie put in.

Jake nodded. "Cassie was the same way, a lot of the time. We went on all kinds of trips she didn't want to go on, to places she never wanted to be. She was usually there, though - she even went on a few extras, all alone. I know there's a lot of places you don't want to go and things you don't want to do, Ronnie. I can't really tell you much other than that Cassie would have been there, and I know that has to count for something."

Ronnie looked away. There it was, the lever to move him. Cassie would go. She wouldn't back down from this fight. She had tried that before and always came back to it. When I needed to get Ronnie going, all I needed to do was remind him of that. I nodded to Jake, a silent thank-you. He nodded back.

((How is the training going?)) David asked.

"We haven't really started yet. The G.O.D. has been getting us up to speed on the preparations they've already made and I have to say I'm pretty impressed. They've rounded up some of the top special-forces soldiers for this, and some of the regular guys. Mostly Marines on the American side, but also some Navy, Amy, and Air Force. There's talk of creating a new branch of the armed forces just for this. Astro Corps. A covert Shield-Branch Operative who also happens to be a Senator is going to be introducing a bill for it in the next day or so. Some Sword-Branch people have already done a bit of training on their own - probably E.P.I.C.s, though we aren't sure."

"You think they'll be up to it when the time comes?" Jeanne asked.

"From what we know, Mars isn't too heavily defended. We didn't exactly check out the Pythagi base, but our friends are extracting and refining our memories of our trip there. We'll look over it and see what we can find out. We can count on some Yeerk help for them, but I think it's mostly Pythagi stuff there. I think we can handle it."

"Great. Keep us updated," I nodded. "Anything else new?"

"Not really. We need to get running, though - I have to give some operatives some info about morphing, Marco has a lesson about Yeerk tactics to teach, and Al has to educate some soldiers in Hork-bajir combat. We'll be in touch."

I noticed that Melissa didn't say anything to Jake. I had no idea why. Wasn't my business anyhow, was it?

Al called the Reliquary next. Got no response. Then he called Tobias's communicator. He answered. He was smiling, which was…really more disturbing than anything. "Hey."

((Hello, Prince Tobias. How are things?))

"Fantastic, Al. Just…fantastic. We just got back from visiting Cao Cao's tomb. We weren't allowed inside, so I sort of morphed my way in. It's…you know how some people don't need a bunch of ornate, fancy stuff to prove how important they are? You can just look at them and know? Like…even if he was in a t-shirt and jeans, you'd still know that Putin was a big deal. This tomb is sort of like that. You can feel it…"

"That's great," Ronnie answered. "How's your wife?"

"Tired," he answered. "The baby's going to be coming very son. Maybe just a matter of days. We'll probably have to be out of here by then. As much as I like China, I think it'd probably be best if our son was born in a country to which we are members. Any news on your end?"

"A bit," I explained. I told him about the Pemalite ship and the need to go to Ssri'Kai space. And about the thing with Putin and the Andalites. He listened silently, then paused to think.

"Alright….I want James, Ronnie, Jeanne, and Melissa on the Ssri'Kai problem. It's best if no one knows we're involved, so try and do things quietly. Al and David, you'll be on the Andalite homeworld. For now, just keep watch for anything suspicious. If you see Yeerk involvement, it's better to expose it than just remove it. I don't think I can get to Ssri'Kai space in time to do any good, but soon I think Rachel and I will be on our way to the Andalite homeworld to give you a hand. Good luck."

**CHAPTER 16**

**Al**

The Andalite Homeworld. My home, at least in the technical sense. I did not feel any special attachment for it, though. I never saw very much of it. I grew up alone, in a hidden location on the homeworld. When my period of isolation ended, I did spend some time amongst other Andalites but I very quickly made my way into the military and was put on a Dome ship and taken away from the Homeworld.

I know my decision to join the military deeply hurt my mother. She wanted me to be a scientist, and for very obvious reasons. Aside from my aptitude in the technical arts, she herself was a skilled scientist. More than that, she knew what military life had done to my father, what it had demanded of him and what it had cost him, in the end. She did not want that life for me. I knew that, understood it. But I could not agree with that.

When I first joined the military, I do not think it had anything to do with what it should have been about. It was not about the honor of my people or the safety of the galaxy. It was about the fact that when I returned to Andalite society, the first thing I heard about were the heroics of my father, uncle, and brother. They were heroes - they were soldiers. I belonged among them. I think that, at first, it was about pleasing them in some way.

I like to think that now, it is about what it should have always been about. I fight for the honor of my people, my family, and myself. I fight to defend the weak and the innocent from the greedy and the cruel. But more than anything, I still fight to please my family. I know this, but I do not regret it. I come from a family of heroes. Not just Elfangor, Aximili, and Tobias - not anymore. Jake and Rachel are my family now as well. Four Animorphs and the Andalite who created them. IT is a massive legacy, and one that I must struggle to be worthy of. I cannot let them down.

But I had other family as well. So, once we cleared the Andalite defenses - they were more than willing to let us in once we gave them the security pass code Prince Tobias possessed - we set course for my mother's Scoop. The homeworld had changed, after the First War. It used to just be open fields and Scoops. Now, there were three star ports for visitors, manufacturing, and government. Luckily, we did not need to go to those for now.

I entered the Scoop first. ((ALLORAN!)) My mother shouted. She raced towards me and arched her tail blade. I pressed mine against hers gently. ((Oh Alloran, I missed you so much. With some of the reports coming from Earth I was afraid I might never see you again!)) she broke off as she noticed the four badly-dressed humans and a rat standing in the entrance to the Scoop. David waved his paw.

((Hi.))

((Hello. I am sorry, I did not realize Alloran would be bringing guests. I am Enril. You are?)) She still did not take her tail blade away from mine, so I did not either.

"Just visiting," James assured her. "I'm James. These are Jeanne, Melissa, Ronnie, and David. We really just came to make sure Al was settled down alright.))

((Except me,)) David added. ((Don't worry, though - I'm unobtrusive. I hope you don't mind.))

((Oh, no. Alloran's friends are welcome in my home any time. I was just expecting some others.))

((Prince Tobias is indisposed at the moment,)) I explained to her. ((He haw just been married and is partaking in a human celebratory ritual. He will likely be visiting us soon, though.))

((Good. There are some things I would like to discuss with him. How has he been treating you?))

((He has been as great a Prince as my father.))

((That's what I was afraid of…))

((An Andalite who doesn't like Elfangor?)) David muttered in our heads. ((Weird.)) James shrugged almost imperceptibly.

"How long are we going to hang around here?" Ronnie asked James. "We're sort of on a tight schedule."

James shrugged again. "Not sure. I guess asl long as Al and David are alright, we can head out whenever. You two going to be okay?"

I nodded. ((Nothing that happens here is going to be as dangerous as the place you're going,)) David confirmed. ((We'll be fine.))

"I hope so. Try to relax if you can. Say hi to Tobias for us."

I was not sure how to say goodbye this time. I do not think any of the others realized quite how dangerous their mission could be. They were the Animorphs, after all, and I think that with that title comes a sense of invincibility. The Animorphs have always taken on impossible odds and always succeeded. They were going into an unknown, alien sector of the galaxy, chasing after dangerous Yeerks in a ship that, while impressive, was militarily useless. They would be without any sort of aid, overt or otherwise.

I elected not to mention any of that to them, though. I was certain that Jeanne, at least, had considered the risks fully, and that James was also aware of the danger, even if Melissa and Ronnie were too inexperienced to really understand how grim their situation would soon be. They needed their confidence - that was something that also came with the Animorph title. As I have learned from Earth's history, if a group of humans believe that they can achieve the impossible, the odds are shockingly great that they will do just that.

**CHAPTER 17**

**Melissa**

Al and David got situated easily enough. Then it was back into space. I had a lot on my mind right then. Most of it wasn't good. I thought I was one of the Animorphs - I thought I was their friend. But there was so much that went on that I didn't know anything about. And so much about them that I didn't know.

I didn't know anything at all about James and that worried me. He seemed to be in charge now. At first that didn't look like a problem, but I saw how he reacted when someone tried to really go against him. Ronnie objected to being used as Queen Roca's plaything and James tried to pull rank on him. I didn't think James would do that…but apparently I was wrong.

What might be worse is that no one challenged him on it. David and Al just went along with it. I guess I can sort of understand that. The Alphamorphs were sticking together, and James sort of had a point. But Jeanne didn't question it either and I had no idea what she thought about it. I didn't know much about her at all, and that worried me, too.

She seemed to be a nice enough person. She was polite, sort of formal, and kind of quiet. Jeanne was smart, reliable, and trusted by the other Animorphs. She'd been at this since this phase of the war started and had a lot of experience. But what did any of that mean, really? Yeah, she was a good soldier - she fought well. But I always thought the Animorphs were more than soldiers - we were supposed to be friends. Weren't we?

I know that in the beginning, they all were. Rachel, Cassie, Jake, Marco, Tobias, Ax…they were friends They really, honestly cared about each other, supported each other. Now…did James care what happened to Ronnie? Did David care what happened to James? Would Ronnie go through any pains to save my life, if it came to that? With the original Animorphs, there was no question about it. Now…honestly, I didn't know.

That wasn't all of it, though. I was worrying about Jake, too. He always seemed like a nice, unassuming guy. Honest, reliable, trustworthy…But I saw what he did to Ronnie. It was so easy for him to manipulate him - and to show James how to do it, too. It came so naturally to him that I couldn't help but wonder what else came so easily to Jake.

It's very hard to forget that he was the leader of the Animorphs for a long time. They all say that Tobias is the one who doesn't show things on his face, but that isn't really true. You can see that he's been through hell as soon as you look at him. When you look at Jake, you can't really tell - not unless you really know him and really know what to look for. You can see it in his eyes when he talks about the past, hear it in his voice and just see it in his face as a whole. Sometimes it's there, the shadows of his pain. And sometimes, most of the time, there's no sign of it at all.

He smiles. He laughs. He makes jokes and gives hugs and makes sandwiches. Jake does all the normal, human things. He seems so normal that sometimes, I honestly forget all that he's seen and done. I guess that was part of why he and the others stayed hidden for as long as they did, even with Tom right there the entire time. Jake is just so incredibly normal that it's just so hard to see him as who he really is.

The thing about all that is that it made me wonder if I really knew Jake. I liked him - I had for a while. I had a bit of a crush on him back in school, but Cassie saw him first and liked him more than I did. Besides, I had a thing for lots of boys. I even had a little crush on Marco at one point, and even Tobias. I didn't think anything of it.

Then came the day, years later, when my father called me on the phone, crying, begging me to come over as soon as possible. I came immediately. That was when he told me that the Yeerks were back - that they had taken him again and he had only been freed just recently by Jake and the others. That was when I got back in touch with them, got to know Jake again.

It was kind of slow, at least for me. I very quickly realized that I still sort of had a thing for him. And when I got to know him better, I realized that it was a lot stronger than I first thought it was. And after I became an Animorph…I wouldn't say that I love Jake. Not yet. It's still far too early for that. But I definitely could love him, given more time.

So I had Jake. Even if there were parts to him that I didn't know and didn't see, I still had Jake. What about the others? Rachel was different now - how could she not be? Cassie was dead. Marco I had never really known. Everyone else…there was no one I'd consider a close friend among them. I knew where Rachel's loyalties were. She had her own family to worry about.

Did I have any friends among the Animorphs? That was part of why I joined - so that I wouldn't be alone again. They saw each other through everything, through a hell that no one else can imagine. I wanted a part of that. I know it's selfish and probably stupid, but I wanted to know that I had friends like that, ones who would never leave me like I had been left before.

Did I have that now? I really doubted it. They kept secrets from me, left me out of discussions, neglected to tell me important things. They all had their own ties to each other - and none of them had anything tying them to me. I was still alone, really. Yeah, they'd fight alongside me, risk their lives with me. But when we went home at the end of the day, did they really care about me, as long as I could still keep fighting with them?

No, I don't think so. Not anymore. I thought I could be a part of the group, one of the gang…but not really. Never for real. Never for me. The others seemed to insert themselves just fine. David had his niche as Al's best friend, and Al was Jeanne's step-brother. James was their friend and the three of them spent a lot of time together. The Alphamorphs were all pretty connected to each other. Except for Ronnie, but I knew it was only a matter of time before he found his spot there, too.

The Omegamorphs? There wasn't any connection needed there, really. Jake, Marco, and Ax were original Animorphs. They were bound together in ways that I can't imagine. Jeanne was Marco's girlfriend - and she had been chosen by Jake to fight this war. How did I fit in? I had Jake, but as far as the others went, I was alone. Again.

It really makes me wonder why I bothered going on at all.

**CHAPTER 18**

**Ronnie**

Z-Space is boring. That's all there is to it. There is nothing to see there, and definitely nothing to do. And this ship was boring, too. The only thing I wanted to do was practice my morphs and get some combat training in, but it wouldn't let me get into any serious fights. As soon as there was a drop of blood, the ship called it off and I spent an hour in a stasis field. It was like giving a kid a time-out.

Forgive me if I don't give you all the little details of our trip to Ssri'Kai space. There isn't anything to tell. Conversations between people, things we watched on TV, that stuff. None of it is interesting, important, or relevant. We didn't even have trouble finding our way to the proper planet, since all of the information Erek had on it was uploaded to the ship's computer. Just know that we made it from the Andalite homeworld to Ssri'Kai space in a matter of a few days. And that as soon as we dropped out of Z-Space, things got exciting.

Let's just say it is a good thing the Pemalites had good cloaking technology. Knowing them, they probably used it to play hide-and-go-seek or something. We were using it to avoid being detected by the Ssri'Kai. If they detected us and told the Yeerks we were here, things could get difficult. We needed to scout out the situation first.

We were above a planet, maybe half-again as large as Earth. The Ssri'Kai were a tough race, designed for trouble. So I had always figured that they were from a tough planet, one that gave a lot of trouble. It would take a really dangerous world to produce a race as deadly as the Ssri'Kai. When I saw their planet, I realized that I could not have been more wrong.

It was incredibly beautiful. We could see lush, green patches, deep blue oceans, and dazzlingly white polar regions. But what really got me were the swaths of violet, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, and pink that were littered across the landscape. Something down there was reflecting amazing colors that we could see from orbit. It was easily the most beautiful planet I ever saw.

James summed it up for us by saying, "Wow."

"Thank you for that, Keanu," Melissa nodded. "What do we do now?"

"The ship says that Erek is down on that planet," Jeanne answered. "Before we dropped him off, Al downloaded a new program to my iHolo. It links it to the ship and will allow us to track Erek. We can use this program to find him."

"Okay…I say we fly to near Erek's location, land wherever it looks convenient, morph to some birds, and fly the rest of the way the hard way," James suggested.

As we flew across the planet, Melissa decided to do some thinking. "You know…what if all this is unnecessary?" She asked. "We've always figured that the Ssri'Kai are dangerous, but what if they're like the Hork-bajir? What if they're really nice, peaceful people?"

We came within sight of their city, if you can call it that. It was made of crystals - those were what was refracting the light. There was a huge trench in the ground, miles wide and even longer and deeper. Crystals of all colors grew out of the sides. And some enormous ones grew from the bottom of the trench. The tallest one stood maybe a hundred feet above the planet's surface. On top of the crystal was a metal tower. Mounted to that tower were eight long, cylindrical things that could only be weapons.

Ssri'Kai stood on the crystals. Not just on the tops, but on the sides, too. Their sticky feet let them stand anywhere they wanted, even upside down. There were structures among the crystals - metal buildings mostly. It was like they built their city around the crystals - or among them. They coexisted, neither clashing nor joining. They worked around the environment while still living as they chose. Cassie would have approved.

Jeanne put the ship down outside of the trench, behind a small hill. We would be able to find it again. The door slid open and we morphed to birds. Jeanne was a red-tailed hawk. So was James. Melissa was a raven. And I morphed a vulture. I know a lot of people think vultures are ugly, but I think they have a certain style to them. Being the largest, I carried Jeanne's iHolo in my talons.

We flew high, to try and avoid being seen. There were birds here, but we only vaguely resembled them. Even from high up, we could see everything we needed to see. It was easy enough to locate the center of the government. Ssri'Kai were rushing in and out, no doubt on important, official business. I couldn't look at the iHolo while flying, but there was no doubt that this was the place when we saw a Hork-bajir exit the building.

Jeanne looked at the iHolo. ((Erek is inside that building. I think we should demorph and find him. Melissa and I have Kelbrid and Hork-bajir morphs. We could pose as part of the Yeerk entourage.))

((I've got a Hork-bajir too,)) James added. ((Picked it up a while ago, back during the First War.))

((We're all very impressed,)) I said. Do I need to tell you it was sarcasm? ((I got one, too. Picked it up at Tobias and Rachel's wedding.))

((Horks it is,)) James agreed. We landed behind what was clearly a dumpster. It was largely empty, though to be honest, the smell coming from it wasn't bad. We demorphed and remorphed without anyone seeing us. Then we just walked into the building like we belonged. There were Ssri'Kai everywhere. And being Ssri'Kai, they were literally everywhere. On the walls, the floor, the ceiling- it didn't matter to them. There was what appeared to be a receptionist desk on the left wall and what I honestly suspect was a vending machine on the roof.

((Show offs,)) Melissa muttered.

We relied on our iHolo to take us where we needed to go. IT was slow going, since the Ssri'Kai didn't exactly know how to accommodate for those who couldn't just walk up walls. Staircases were few and far between, as were elevators or dropshafts. It took an hour for us to make our way to the thirtieth floor, where Erek was. We came to a door at last. With a shrug, I knocked.

Erek opened the door. He looked like a normal guy, a few years younger than I was. I knew he was actually a few thousand years older than me. Cassie always liked the Chee and their absolute commitment to nonviolence. I used to, too. Now, I disagreed with them. Now I new that sometimes, people have to die. ((Hello, Erek,)) James said pleasantly. ((We're here to help.))

Erek nodded and half-tugged, half-pulled us inside. "I'm glad you're here. We've got real problems."

((Yeerks trying to infest Ssri'Kai leaders,)) Jeanne commented. ((Nothing we haven't dealt with before.))

Erek shook his head. "Yeah, they're up to that. But this is a whole lot more complicated than that. We've got maybe a week before this whole thing blows up in our faces and the whole galaxy is doomed."


	4. Chapters 19 through 24

**CHAPTER 19**

**David**

I let Al spend the day with his mother. I knew he would have liked to have me around, but I also figured they could use some time alone. I know she didn't get to see him at all when he was growing up, and I think he ended up with us only a couple of years after that. All things considered, Al could use some time with his mother as much as I could have used some with mine.

My mother. Was she alive? I had no idea. Until yesterday, I didn't even know my father was alive. Did my family somehow, by some miracle, survive the war, safe and sound? Even stranger, had they profited from it? I guess I could sort of see it. Yeah, it made some sense, now that I knew what to look for.

The Yeerks would have taken very good care of them, at least at first. They were leverage, something to use against me. But after a while, when I disappeared…who knew? I guess the Yeerks always kind of thought that I'd come back and make problems for them. Maybe start a resistance of my own or just try to take the secret public. If I tried something like that, my parents would pay the price. So the Yeerks would have kept them safe, until the very end.

And afterwards? That made sense, too. Honestly, it didn't shock me that my father was the head of Tri-I. It was a surprise, but stranger things have happened to me, and I could see how this one came to be. My father had a background in the covert intelligence business. He was some kind of spy for years and years. Even now, I'm not entirely sure what branch he worked for. He had the necessary skills and connections to get the basics of Tri-I together. And he certainly had the motivation.

The Yeerks took his freedom. They took his wife and his son. If there was ever a man who would devote his life to making sure no one else ever met the same fate, it would be him. I've probably said it before, but I'll never forget the last time I saw my father acting of his own free will. When our house was being invaded by monsters out of Lovecraft's nightmares, my father stood his ground to protect me. It's who he is, what he did. And so it really didn't surprise me to see that he had taken on the task of protecting the whole world.

What would happen if he knew about me? It was so hard to say. My father was always big on loyalty - probably just short of Guraff-level. The things I did, right after my family was taken…the way I acted…what I tried to do…could he ever forgive me for that? Could I ever atone for those sins? I was trying to. Maybe. I was trying to right now. But how much longer did I have left? And what would I do when I ran out of time?

I'd become human again. I knew that much. But where would I go? Would I stay with the Animorphs, advising them and trying to help them? Would I travel the galaxy, trying to help other Yeerk victims? Or maybe there was a new option, something I had never realized before. Maybe…maybe I could actually go home. With my father and mother. I'd go back to them, looking like the same 14 year old boy who was taken from them. It would almost be like nothing had ever happened. Me, my family…all safe. Just like before.

But things could never be the way they were. I was too different now. But…I was a better person now, I was sure of that. I don't put much stock in the usual labels we slap on people. Even now, I make some decisions that most people would call pretty cold - pretty evil, maybe. But I know that I'm a good person now. If I did go home, I'd be a son my parents could be proud of.

But I did have other things to do rather than muse about my family and my future. We had a job to do, and I needed to try and keep my mind on that. ((Hey, Al?)) I asked. ((I want to go out and take a look around. Maybe drop into the city and see what I can find out about this election and the candidates.))

((I will come with you,)) Al offered.

((Nah, that's alright. You and your mother could use the time together. I'll let you know what I find out when I get back.))

Enril didn't live too far from _Illsev_ City, which was, conveniently, the place where the major governmental and scientific bodies met. That wasn't coincidence, though - being a scientist, it was natural that Enril lived nearby. I flew there in golden eagle morph. It would stand out a bit, but Andalites would just assume I was a tourist or something visiting the city - or maybe a reporter covering the election. Either way, I wasn't really going to get harassed.

I landed behind a small building and demorphed. Andalites still weren't big on towers. The tallest building in the city was only three stories high, and that was a starport. Everything else was pretty much at ground level. Andalites aren't big fans of heights. At least that meant less climbing for me.

Instead of sidewalks or streets, the space between buildings was grass, which was natural, knowing Andalites. Pretty much everyone was on foot - or hoof - but I did see a few oval-shaped vehicles hovering over the grass, no doubt transporting important people or tourists who weren't big on walking.

It didn't have the usual buzz that a city on Earth might during an election of this scale. There were no giant posters, no people with signs, no one going door to door trying to get your vote. It was almost like there wasn't an election at all. But while it wasn't visible, I sure could hear it.

All of the Andalites walking around the city were talking, and not many were bothering to keep their discussions private. It took a few minutes for me to be able to sort through the confusing mental babbling, but eventually I could distinguish a few things. The Andalites weren't talking in any language I knew, but I could still pick up names when I heard them, and everyone seemed to be talking about the same four names.

Lirem Arrepoth Terrouss. Alloran-Semitur-Coras.

Caysath-Winwall-Esgarrouth. Jaham-Estalan-Forlan. Those were the names that people kept talking about. I didn't think Lirem had much of a chance, though. He had been the head of the Electorate for a long time, and people weren't happy with him anymore. Jaharim had been the head of the War Council, and they weren't happy with that either. Those two were taking a lot of blame for how long the war lasted, and no one wanted a repeat of that.

Alloran had a chance. But he wasn't charismatic or popular. He was a war criminal, and the taint of having been Esplin's host would never leave him. Caysath had probably the best chance, all things considered. No huge black marks on his record like the others had. If everyone was left to their own devices, he could probably pull it off.

The question was, would they be left to their own devices? No - not a chance. No one would just let this election go along at its own pace. The Yeerks had to have a finger in here somehow - probably the Pythagi as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Azmaveth or the Drode wanted to get in on the action. And Putin was interfering as well - through us. Whose side were we on, really? Was our job to help the election go fairly, or was it to make sure the outcome was favorable to us? I had no clue what our job even was here. I was just glad that deciding that kind of thing is what we leave up to our leaders.

**CHAPTER 20**

**Jeanne**

Erek's room looked like a room in any human hotel. I had no doubts that the Ssri'Kai had remodeled these guest quarters to suit him. Erek was the primary secretary for this mission, so he was given some of the best quarters. His room had a sitting area, a sleeping area, and a private bathroom. Another function of being the secretary - Erek knew all of the Yeerk secrets and plans.

"Guys, I really don't know where to begin with this one," Erek shook his head. "I couldn't send most of the information because over this much distance, I couldn't be sure who might intercept it. Our security is good, but there might be something between here and home that is even better. We've got serious problems, though."

"One step at a time," James advised. He looked at me. I knew what he wanted from me. What information would we need? General information first.

"How are Yeerk operations here progressing?" I asked.

"Not good on the legitimate front. The Yeerk diplomats here ran into sort of a wall with the Ssri'Kai. Basically, they want a major military move from the Ssri'Kai, but the Ssri'Kai aren't willing to grant it yet. They want to investigate the matter for themselves, and the Yeerks can't let them do that."

"Why not?" Melissa asked.

"And what military move do they want?" Ronnie added.

"Kind of a long story."

"Cliff notes version, please," James suggested.

"Alright. A long time ago, the Ssri'Kai were the dominant power in this area of space, and had an empire of sorts that stretched from the boundaries of their current territory all the way over to what was Pythagi space. The Ssri'Kai weren't rulers, though - they were more like guardians. They have no desire to dominate or command other races. That was my masters' doing."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"The Ssri'Kai were created by the Pemalites. The Pemalites were nonviolent, but there were some who believed that sometimes, violence was necessary. They saw strong races destroying peaceful ones. So some Pemalites decided to make a race that would put a stop to that. Strong, powerful warriors who would defend the weak against the strong. They would be the great defenders of the galaxy. So they designed the Ssri'Kai and left them to develop on their own.

"When the Ssri'Kai took to interstellar travel, they took on the role of the galaxy's protectors and police. When a stronger race decided to abuse a weaker one, the Ssri'Kai arrived to defend the weak and helpless. They were almost perfect defenders, though there was one odd aberration in their mentality. The Pemalites designed them with a love of nature, but this went to a bit of an extreme. The Ssri'Kai believe their homeworld, Ssri, to be the most beautiful planet in all the galaxy. And at one point, they exterminated three entire races because they refused to accept that. It makes me cry when I think about that, but aside form that dark chapter, they were great."

"Until…" James prompted.

Erek's eyes darkened. "Until the Kelbrid came. It's impossible to say where they came from. They just…appeared. They attacked Ssri'Kai space and the Ssri'Kai fought back. The war lasted for generations and generations. In the end, the Kelbrid were finally defeated in battle on Ssri itself, but when that happened, the Kelbrid had claimed about half of Ssri'Kai space. That's the part you now know as Kelbrid Space. The Ssri'Kai fortified their worlds and prepared to defend themselves, but not even the Kelbrid can fight forever."

There was something here, something we were missing. I very much missed Marco at that moment. He would have seen it instantly. What was it?

"See," Erek continued, "the Yeerks want the Ssri'Kai to take back their old territory. The overall Yeerk strategy is to draw the Allied forces into battle in that sector and have the Ssri'Kai handle it. Meanwhile, the Yeerks, Kelbrid, and Pythagi would conquer their own part of the galaxy. The problem is that if the Ssri'Kai find out that the Yeerks are working with the Kelbrid, all bets are off and they've got a huge new enemy to worry about."

"So we just have to expose the Yeerk-Kelbrid alliance," Melissa answered. "That shouldn't be too hard."

"Except that there are no Kelbrid within lightyears," Erek sighed. "Good luck with that. But there are even bigger problems. Much bigger. For starters, if any Ssri'Kai find out you're here, then Kelbrid or no Kelbrid, the Ssri'Kai would join with the Yeerks to destroy the humans. Ssri is holy to them, and for outsiders to set foot on it uninvited…it could mean death for your whole race if they find you here."

"How comforting," James sighed.

"There's more," Erek said. "Like I told you, it's really bad here. The Yeerks have gotten tired of the Ssri'Kai delaying. So they're going to try and infest the Ssri'Kai leaders. The Ssri'Kai-Controllers will agree to the Yeerk plan, form an alliance, and send out the armies. You have to stop them from being infested, whatever it takes."

"That should be doable," I nodded. Already, I was starting to get some vague ideas.

"There's even more," Erek warned us. "That's just part of the plan. The other part is to frame the Andalites."

"Say what? How?" Ronnie asked.

"The Yeerks got some Andalite technology from various traders. Mostly just Shredders and other small things. But they also have pieces of fighters and Dome ships. They're planning to attack a Ssri'Kai world and leave behind traces of the Andalites passing. When the Ssri'Kai think that they've been struck by Andalites…"

James said a word that was probably appropriate, given the circumstances. "Sounds like we're going to have to split up," he sighed. "Jeanne and Melissa…I thing we would be best off with you staying here. This is sort of your area, Jeanne, and Melissa, you're definitely quieter about things than Ronnie is. Ronnie and I will concentrate on stopping this Yeerk attack."

"There's one more thing," Erek added.

"This gets worse? How could it get worse?" Ronnie demanded.

"The Yeerk in charge here? It isn't just any Yeerk. This thing is so big that the Emperor himself is here to do the negotiations."

We all just stared at Erek in silence. We had never dealt with the Emperor before. Not knowingly, at least. "You're sure?" I asked.

He nodded slowly. "One hundred percent. Do you remember how at the start of this war, the Visser rewrote the Yeerk laws and redesigned their power structure?"

I nodded. "Yes, I do."

"Well, at the time, the Council of Thirteen didn't have any choice but to go along with it. But they weren't happy about it. Then a new Yeerk appeared on the scene. Quickly and quietly, the Council promoted him and appointed him as their leader. They want their power back. More specifically, they want the Visser to fail, or at least be overshadowed by and even more powerful Yeerk. So this new Emperor of theirs is supposed to be the one to bring the old hierarchy back on top."

"He sounds dangerous," I admitted. But there was incredible opportunity here. The Yeerk Emperor…..it was almost impossible to believe.

"One more thing you should know," Erek added. "This Emperor…I know his name. It's Esplin Nine-Four-Double-Six. The Lesser."

I knew what that meant. It meant that now, our enemy was the Visser's twin brother.

**CHAPTER 21**

**James**

This was a whole lot to deal with, but we could probably handle it. We just needed to stop and think about it. "Alright…objectives. What are they, exactly?"

"Prevent the infestation of the Ssri'Kai leaders and the invasion of the Ssri'Kai planet," Jeanne answered.

I nodded. "Alright…how can we get that done?"

"The Emperor isn't going to let just anyone have a host as important as a Ssri'Kai leader," Erek chimed in. "He's got some specially selected followers in a Yeerk pool somewhere around here. I don't know where, though."

"I thought the secretary knew everything," Ronnie commented.

Erek shrugged. "Not something like this. It's far too easy to see a Yeerk taking out one of these specially selected Yeerks for a chance to take his place. I don't know anything about them. They might be sitting in a pool in the Emperor's bathroom for all I know. Or they might be walking around. I don't even know if the Emperor told them who they are."

"So as far as we know, you could be one of them," Jeanne noted.

"Yeah, I guess. The Emperor does put a lot of responsibility on me."

"Alright then," I said. "Jeanne and Melissa. Mission one is to find out who and where these Yeerks are. If we take them out, we can really slow down the Emperor's plans here. Try to make it look like an accident, though - or at least non-Animorph activity."

Melissa nodded. "Will do."

"The Emperor will have a backup plan in the event that his chosen Yeerks meet with an untimely death," Jeanne noted. "In an emergency, he would likely go with any available Yeerk and worry about loyalty later. He would not abandon these plans because of one setback. We need to be prepared for whatever he might do next."

"What about the attack?" Melissa asked. "How can we stop that?"

"When are they going to attack?" Ronnie asked.

Erek shrugged again. "It's hard to say. They're waiting for someone to arrive to take command of the Yeerk military forces hidden nearby. The Emperor hasn't told us who yet, but it's some big time Yeerk general."

I looked at Jeanne as subtly as I could. She nodded slightly. She was thinking the same thing I was. We don't know of a whole lot of big Yeerk generals - not living ones at any rate. But I had the strong suspicion that we'd be running into Guraff again, and that made me more than a little nervous. Without Tobias to help us out, I didn't want to see what might happen if we got into it with Guraff.

Of course, there was no need to get Ronnie overly excited just yet. "We'll need to find out more about this general before we know what, exactly, we should be doing. In the mean time, maybe Ronnie and I can find other ways to delay things, or helpful information. Erek, where are the local Yeerk forces?"

"In orbit near a star that forms the left eye of the constellation the Ssri'Kai call _Then'Sshrak_. They've got a Pool ship, two Blade ships, and full swarms of Bug fighters. Any info you want will be in the Pool ship somewhere."

"Any chance you can help us with that?" I asked.

"Maybe. If I can patch into the mainframe remotely, I think I can access anything you need, provided there is nothing to disrupt the connection. But finding a secure router won't be too simple."

"Would the Pemalite ship work?" Melissa asked.

"Never mind, it'll be extremely simple."

"Without more information, we'll just have to wing it once we get there," I sighed. I didn't like the thought of that, but there wasn't much choice.

"I've uploaded the coordinates to the Pemalite ship, and to Jeanne's iHolo," Erek added.

"If we're leaving the ship here so Erek can communicate with us, how are we going to get to where the fleet is?" Ronnie pointed out.

"The Emperor likes to inspect his fleet," Erek answered. "You might be able to sneak aboard his transportation shuttle when he goes. He uses his own, personal ship. A cruiser-class Dart ship."

I looked at Jeanne and raised an eyebrow. "The sort of ship we stole from the Yeerks to rescue the Iskoort," she explained. "I am surprised no one mentioned the name of that type of ship earlier."

"I can't keep them straight," I sighed.

"So what now? Do we just start looking right away?" Melissa asked.

"We should perform some reconnaissance first," Jeanne suggested. "It would help to know our way around this building in an emergency."

That sounded like a good idea, so we all started morphing. Flies wouldn't be noticed and we all had them. When they joined, we had been sure to get Ronnie and Melissa equipped with the basic morphs. Fly, cockroach, dolphin, bird of prey, battle morph, and a few others.

We were just finished morphing when Erek's door opened. Three Hork-bajir entered. They were the most heavily-armed Hork-bajir I've ever seen. In addition to the Dracon beam each had in his hand, they each had a second Dracon beam in a holster on their thighs, and a larger, tube-shaped Dracon weapon hung on their backs. Each one wore a black sash with gold trim.

The Hork-bajir were followed by a Controller we didn't recognize. At first glance it was humanoid, but after looking closer, that was very clearly not the case. There was something like leaves or spikes jutting out of the skull so that it resembled the sun like a child might draw it. It had two extremely long and narrow eyes and I couldn't see any pupils in them. There was no nose or mouth to speak of. Its flesh was grey and cracked.

It looked it was hunched over. I couldn't really see much of its body because it was wearing a red robe with gold trim. I could see the very ends of its arms - extremely thin and grey. The skin was cracked a bit, and it reminded me of a bird's leg. Its hand was circular or cylindrical, with far too many fingers. I couldn't see its legs or feet.

A Nak!)) Jeanne gasped. ((They were supposed to be extinct.))

((Nak?)) I asked.

((A creature from the Yeerk homeworld,)) she answered. ((According to what I was taught, most of them went extinct a long time ago. They're very special and perhaps the ideal host for Yeerks.))

((Why is that?)) Melissa asked.

((The Nak are somewhat plantlike. They absorb Kandrona rays like a plant absorbs sunlight and use them to feed its body. A Yeerk in a Nak host would not need to leave its body every three days to feed - they can do it in the host.))

((Effectively removing the Yeerk's biggest weakness,)) I shuddered. Not a pleasant thought. ((Are they strong?))

((I have no idea. I barely learned anything about them. Edriss thought they no longer existed.))

A new voice interrupted our conversation. It sounded almost like it was hissing. ((Emrush One-Six-Nine. May the Kandrona shine and strengthen you. You may rise.))

Erek had dropped to his knees as soon as the Hork-bajir entered. His forehead was pressed to the floor. Slowly, he got to his feet. "May the Kandrona shine and strengthen you, your highness."

((What news is there of my brother's activities?))

"His whereabouts remain unknown, your highness."

And what of the God General?))

"He also cannot be found. Our forces still receive regular communication from them, but it is impossible to say where the orders are coming from, geographically and astrologically speaking."

((Do they know of my appointment?))

"Very few do, your highness. It has not yet reached their ears, though I suspect that the Visser's advisor, your predecessor, already knows. He keeps in close contact with your peers on the Council without the Visser's knowledge."

((Salheer is no fool. We can trust him to reveal this when the time is right. He does not want to see my brother succeed in his gambits any more than I do.))  
"Of course not, your Highness."

((And what of our allies on the Andalite world? Have they made any progress?))

I tensed up. I guess that answered the question of whether or not the Yeerks were involved in the Andalite election. But something about what he said bothered me. I couldn't figure out what.

"It would seem so, your Highness. Their primary agent is in a strong possession to take the election, and our allies believe that they can remove his primary rival extremely soon."

((Good. And do we have any more information on the identities of our allies?))

Erek shook his head. "I am afraid not, your highness." Now I realized what bothered me. Their allies. Not their agents. Someone was trying to steal the election on the Andalite world, but it wasn't the Yeerks.

But who other than a Controller could successfully infiltrate the Andalite world? An Animorph, maybe. Who could it be?

**CHAPTER 22**

**Al**

I passed a day with my mother before David and I began our task. My mother was feeding, so David and I were planning in her Scoop. The less she knew about our mission, the better, for a number of reasons. She would feel guilty over interfering in the election, if it came to that. But worse, if she knew that Prince Tobias condoned such a thing - if he did condone it when he came - she might use that to try and have his title taken.

It is a rare thing, for a civilian to request that a military officer lose his rank, but it has happened before. If a civilian somehow discovered that an officer was unfit for his position, said civilian could petition the War Council to have that officer demoted. And I do not have many illusions about my mother. She is a kind enough woman, but she is no fan of my Prince. She would like nothing more than for me to remain here with her and become a scientist like she believes I was meant to. But that is not my path.

David had gathered some posters and such from the city. From what he told me there were not many - Andalties are not particularly excitable most of the time - but there were some informative ones that had proved useful for at least our basic intelligence gathering.

((Man, Al…you guys do not know how to run an election. These posters are just…how are these supposed to convince anyone to vote for anyone?))

((What is wrong with them?))

((They're too simple. All they are are pictures of the candidate, with a list of their good qualities.))

((What else would they be?))

((They should be inspiring, iconic…this is just a picture of Lirem in a field, telling us that he has experience and diplomatic ties to many races. That is not persuasive. Although…))

((What?)) I asked.

((I'm thinking…is this how Andalites always run their elections? All…plain and stuff?))

((As far as I know, yes.))

((Great. Then it should be pretty easy to spot who is getting outside aid, if anyone.))

((What do you mean?)) I pressed.

((So far, all the candidates are showing is their good qualities. But with human elections - American ones at any rate - it's only a matter of time before things get less honest. Secrets start getting dug up, lies get spread, all that good stuff. When these candidates start to get into that, I think we'll be able to tell who is getting some help from someone who really shouldn't be helping.))

((That sounds sensible. Though I find it unlikely that any of the candidates would accept aid from an outside source,)) I answered.

((Yeah? Maybe you're right. But considering some of the things Lirem and Jaharim have been up to in the past, there isn't a whole lot I wouldn't put past them. And I really don't know anything about this Caysath guy.))

((Captain-Prince Caysath was the Andalite in charge of the defense of the Hork-bajir planet,)) I explained. ((He fought with Prince Tobias in the opening battle of this war. He was also the commander of the fleet I was stationed with before I was transferred to Prince Tobias's command. He is a good man, and a trustworthy one. I think…))

((You think what?))

((Perhaps it would be best if Caysath were the one who win the election,)) I answered. ((He is a skilled commander, and one who knows how to differ to those whose expertise exceed his own, as he showed when he listened to Prince Tobias and Rachel. He is most likely the best choice.))

((Yeah, it was looking like things are in his favor. I don't know, though. I don't think he's ready for the sort of politics other races play. You're a peaceful people at heart, Al, but politics is still a war game and no one plays nice.))

((I like to think that my people have a bit more dignity than that.))

((Maybe all on their own, but not when other races are getting involved.))

((What should we do now?)) I asked. ((I do not like the idea of waiting for our enemies to reveal themselves. But I do not want to interfere more than we must. This is not something that we have any right to involve ourselves in if we do not need to.))

David nodded. ((I understand how you feel.)) I know David well enough to know that he intentionally did not say that he agreed with me. ((There's a debate tomorrow night. All four major candidates are going to be together, talking about 'the issues'. I think we definitely need to check it out.))

It certainly sounded like the best idea at the time.

**CHAPTER 23**

**Melissa**

I couldn't see much of the Emperor, but what I saw freaked me out. Those hands were pretty weird, not like anything I've ever seen before. And that face was pretty unnerving too. I also didn't like the idea that he didn't need to leave his host ever. It'd be a whole lot harder to catch him vulnerable some time.

The emperor didn't have anything more to say to Erek, so he left with his guards. Erek relaxed slightly. "He always gives me the creeps. Rumor around the Pool has it that he used to eat other Yeerks for Kandrona when the Visser cut him off from the Pool. Scary guy."

((Scary guy going somewhere important,)) James added. ((I think we should follow him. What do you guys think?))

((He might take us somewhere of use,)) Jeanne agreed. ((I believe we should attempt to pursue him.))

((Sure thing,)) I agreed. Ronnie just grunted.

"You guys be careful. If he catches you, he'll probably do worse than infest you. He'll probably use your presence here to help get the Ssri'Kai on his side of the war and we can't have that."

((Yeah, that's the worst possible outcome of him catching us,)) Ronnie muttered.

We zipped under the door, following the Emperor and his Hork-bajir guards. It was kind of hard at first. Fly senses are weird. They have compound eyes, so it's like seeing a thousand pictures of something at once, each slightly different. And the colors are weird, too. I knew that the Emperor's robe was red, but to me it looked sort of purple, or maybe blue.

((Remember, flies are not native to this planet,)) Jeanne prompted. ((People will not simply overlook us. We just remain out of sight.))

We hugged the ceiling, keeping the Emperor in sight as much as we could. We followed him for longer than I would have liked to. He didn't do much. Mostly, he just walked around and visited some more subordinates. Unfortunately, they didn't talk about anything interesting. At last, though, after who knows how long, he finally decided to do something interesting.

The Emperor went into another room almost identical to the one where Erek lived. ((Is my ship prepared for departure?)) he asked the Human-Controller inside.

"Everything is ready," the Yeerk answered. "We can depart as soon as you enter."

((Good. These negotiations are taking far too long. At this rate, my brother will have lost the entire war before these talks are finished. We are going to inspect my army. It is nearly time for them to move.))

"Yes, Highness. We shall depart at once."

((Guess this is our cue,)) James said, sounding not very happy about it. ((I didn't think we'd be leaving so soon, but we can't let this chance slip away.))

((We will follow you to the hangar,)) Jeanne offered. It made sense to me, so I didn't argue. We all set out after the Emperor's blob again.

We must have been low on morph time by the time the Emperor reached his shuttle. It looked like the one we had stolen to go and rescue the Iskoort. Sharp, pointy, black - typical Yeerkish design, I think. I was a little surprised that the Emperor didn't have something big and nasty like a Blade ship, but I guess bringing one of those to a diplomatic meeting would have gone over poorly.

((I see a door opening,)) James commented. ((Ronnie, you ready?))

((Am I ready to fly into a hole the size of that thing's body? Yes, James, I think I can manage that.))

((Alright then. Jeanne, Melissa, I'm not sure when we'll be able to contact you again. Keep in touch with Al and David, and with the others if you can do it safely. We'll send our messages to the Pemalite ship when we can. Erek can pick them up remotely.))

((Alright,)) I said. ((What do we do in the mean time, with the Emperor gone?))

((We will keep an eye on the Ssri'Kai leadership,)) Jeanne answered. ((The Emperor might make his move when he is not even on the planet. That might be wisest. If that is the case, we must be prepared for the Yeerks to strike very soon.))

This really wasn't good at all. Two of us on the Andalite homeworld, light-years away. Tobias and Rachel almost completely unavailable. Jake, Marco, and Ax stuck with Tri-I. And now James and Ronnie rushing off with the Emperor to a part of space we knew nothing about while Jeanne and I were left to stop whatever the plan the Yeerks had going here. This was not going well at all.

And, in the great Animorphs tradition, things only got worse from there.

**Chapter 24**

**Ronnie**

((We'll have to find a place to demorph soon, we're running very low on time,)) James commented to me as we buzzed through the Dart ship.

((That won't be easy,)) I muttered. I'm no expert on Yeerk ships, but I know a few things. You get some exposure to those sorts of things living with Animorphs. The Dart ship was small. It had a bridge, a lounge/kitchen area, some small quarters for a very limited crew, and a small cargo bay for two even smaller transport shuttles. Not a whole lot of unoccupied space there. ((Any ideas?))

((Not the bridge,)) James said quickly. ((Obviously. Lounge is out, and so are the crew quarters. I think our best bet is one of the transport shuttles. They're probably empty.))

((How do we get inside?)) I asked.

((Not sure, but we'll probably think of something,)) James admitted. ((I think they'd be this way.))

I followed James to the cargo bay at the back of the ship. It curved under the Dart ship and I think it also provided access to the mechanical stuff, like the engines. I don't know, I'm not an engineer. There were two transport ships in the cargo hold, basically just small rectangular ships that could carry maybe five human sized creatures. They were unguarded but locked down.

((This is the part where we think of something, isn't it?)) I asked.

((Something like that,)) James agreed. We were both silent for several moments. I could see a thousand images of the ship and none of them showed me a way in. After several full minutes of staring, James finally sighed and said, ((We might need a plan B.))

((We need to demorph. That's the important part. As long as we're out of sight, it should be fine,)) I thought. ((I say we just get into the engine bays and demorph there. I doubt anyone would be running around there to see us.))

((Fair enough,)) James agreed. ((Let me go first, though. I'll get into my lion costume quickly and cover you in case someone does come along.))

James buzzed off to one of the engine bays. I followed him. I couldn't see very well in the dull, red lights that illuminated the engine bay, but what I could see wasn't pretty. I've seen Cassie morph, and she can make it look beautiful, like some new form of art. James didn't have that talent. And nothing about a fly is beautiful to begin with.

Another couple of minutes later, James was in his lion morph. Since the engine bays were designed to accommodate Taxxons, he managed to fit easily enough. I demorphed and nodded to him. "Okay…now what?"

"This she'll be going to the Pool ship," James thought. "That's our goal. Any information there is to find, we can get there. We need to get into some place with access to their computer network and then get in touch with Erek. He will be able to hack it from there. We'll just have to keep an eye out while he does that. So in the mean time, we need to make sure no one finds us. Any ideas where to hide?"

I nodded towards the cargo hold. "We could try those transports again. If this ship is going right to the Pool ship, they wouldn't be using the transports."

"Yeah…Good idea. I just don't know how to get inside…"

"Ask nicely," I suggested.

James raised an eyebrow at me. "I didn't think you were much of a comedian."

"I wasn't joking. Yeerks used to make their doors out of Raminite, an organic metal. It's alive, in a sense. Not conscious, more like a plant than anything else. It can grow, change, and adapt. They'll build a certain section of a ship out of it to accommodate whatever they think they might need to bring inside. That way, they can use the same 'door' for a few troops as for a Kandrona generator. With the right…persuasion…we can get a door to open."

"How do you know so much about organic metals?" James asked me.

"Cassie and I did some research on them a while back, trying to figure out if they counted as animals or not. It isn't that hard to get one to open for you. That's part of the reason they've been phased out in newer craft. The Andalites really don't use them anymore, but I guess the Yeerks are slow learners. We'll need something that carries a charge."

After a few minutes of searching, James decided to just rip some cords out of the wall. That would do it. He pulled them over to the nearest transport ship. "Now what?"

"Just touch it to the ship until it starts to move," I answered. James gingerly poked at the ship a few times. I sighed and grabbed the cables from him. I jammed them against the side of the ship. Nothing. I tried the other side with the same result. In the end, I climbed on top of the ship and finally found a part that shivered when I electrocuted it.

I drew a small circle with the cables. Slowly, I spiraled it outwards, making it larger and larger. At first there wasn't much effect, but after a few moments, a small hole opened at the center of the spiral. I kept it up and the hole grew until at last I could fit through it. James dropped in first. I returned the cords and hoped the Yeerks didn't notice a sudden fluctuation in their power.

James leaned back in one of the seats. "Next stop: pool ship."


	5. Chapters 25 through 30

**CHAPTER 25****  
****David**

The debate kind of reminded me of a human one. It was to take place in a field outside of Executive City. Granted, most of the homeworld consists of fields outside of the cities, but that's not the point. The field was packed with Andalites from all parties. There was barely any room to stand. Thankfully, Al and I managed to get a good spot close to the candidates with some of Caysath's people. They remembered the help Tobias gave them in the battle for Hork-bajir and were more than happy to help us out.

The candidates themselves stood on a stage in the middle of the field. Projectors were set up here and there to broadcast their images for those who couldn't see them, which was most Andalites. Security was surprisingly light, all things considered. Not a good sign. I could feel in my bones that something was going to go down tonight.

An Andalite I didn't recognize introduced the candidates briefly. Lirem-Arrepoth-Terrouss, once Master of the Academy and head of the Electorate. His was the position that was being contested. Jaham-Estalan-Forlan, current head of the War Council. Caysath-Winwall-Esgarrouth, decorated commander and a new challenger. Alloran-Semitur-Corass. Not quite so decorated, but far more experienced and probably better motivated.

There might be some confusion here about how this actually works, so I'll try to explain it to you. Forget what other Animorphs might have said, they were probably confused. As Al explained it to me, the Andalite people as a whole are governed by the Electorate, a council of Andalites that the people as a whole elect. The head of the Electorate was the de facto leader of the Andalites, the one with most of the power. The head of the Electorate, and the other members, could serve as long as the people wanted them to. When enough Andalites wanted them replaced, they were gone. That's what we were electing.

To help it run things, the Electorate creates a number of councils. There's an Agricultural Council, a Diplomatic Council, a newly-formed Industrial Council, a few others, and of course the War Council, which has been the most powerful in the past due to the long war with the Yeerks. The War Council held a lot of power and authority, but they still answered to the Electorate. Unless, of course, Jaham ended up elected as the head of the Electorate. Then the War Council would have free reign.

I don't recall a single instance of letting the military run a country ending well, do you?

I'll admit that I tuned out the first part of the debate, since it was just a question and answer section about things I didn't care about. What grass they would propose growing where, what trees they would consider 'protected' (here's a hint, it's all of them), what industries they would promote, and a bunch of other things that really don't effect us at all.

I was almost starting to think this was going to be a waste of time when we finally got to the important part: military matters. That was what was at the heart of all this. The last war with the Yeerks had been a long, hard one for the Andalites. They wanted to make sure that this one went much, much better. So how would they go about doing that? Whoever could convince them that they had the best solution to the military situation would take this thing.

An Andalite I didn't know was asking the questions to the candidates. This time, he started with Lirem. ((Councilor Lirem, we are currently facing a military crisis. Enemy troops seem to be unlimited and most of our allies are unable to be of any direct use. What actions do you advise to rectify the situation?))

((We must remain focused on the long term,)) Lirem answered. ((Even if our allies are of no direct use to us at this particular moment, building strong alliances for the future is of incalculable value. We must maintain strong ties to our allies - particularly the humans - and endure this current threat.))

Alloran scoffed his hoof at that but said nothing. Jaham answered the question next. ((Our allies are of no use to us at the moment. Instead of concentrating on glorified, overgrown children, we must focus on our own affairs. Defense of the homeworld is the most pressing concern. If other races are enslaved or destroyed, it is a terrible loss. But we cannot extend ourselves to the point where we, too, are vulnerable. We must concentrate on a defensive overall strategy of protecting key worlds rather than throwing away resources rclaiming ones that are of no value to us.))

This time, Alloran laughed out loud but didn't say a word. Caysath answered next. ((To say that there are worlds of no value to us is a gross misstatement, Councilor Jaham. Life in all forms is valuable. We Andalites of all races should know that. We care for every blade of grass, every flower and tree. If we show this much care to those who cannot think and feel, how can we abandon those who can? There is only one just course of action. We must fight the Yeerks wherever they are, whether a world is of military value or not. We are the strongest people in all the galaxy, and it is our duty to fight to defend the weak. Just as we care for the blades of grass, so too should we defend our allies. It is the only just course of action.))

Alloran laughed again. ((You speak of justice, Caysath, but what do you know? There is no justice in this galaxy, only suffering and pain. The question is who will suffer, and how greatly. You're all fools, all three of you.))

((Now see here,)) Lirem began.

((Silence, buffoon,)) Alloran interrupted. I couldn't help but be reminded of the Visser. ((You pretend to be looking to the future, but you ignore the present. What good does it do us if the whole galaxy is allied with us if no one will stand with us against the Yeerks? You refused aid time and time again in the First War and it cost many races everything.

((And you, Jaham, speak of defending our own people. And how will you do that? Will you employ your original strategy for Earth? I wonder how many here know of it.))

((This is not the time for-)) Jaham began. Alloran cut him off.

((You wanted to sacrifice Earth. Once it was enslaved and full of Yeerks, you wanted to destroy it completely and wipe out all the Yeerks on that planet. A winning strategy, perhaps, but not for this election. You would let the whole galaxy burn to cover your own backside. What race would deal with you? Only the Yeerks, I think.

((And you, Caysath. You are naïve, boy. You want to talk about justice? Duty? One of those is relevant in war - the other is just a sick joke. There is no justice in war. None at all. There is only violence, pain, and death. You cannot fight a war to protect. Not really. You can only fight it to avenge, to vindicate, to prevent. You can cut out a cancerous limb before the infection spreads. That is all war is good far.

((There is only one strategy in this war that can work. We cannot stand by to any degree. Neither can we spend our forces to defend our allies. Our armies must be focused on only one thing: killing our enemies. We must attack. If seizing a major Pythagi manufacturing world means abandoning Leera of its defenses, then so be it. None of you know how to fight the Yeerks, as you have proven time and time again. If you did, the First War would have ended decades earlier. The longer you wait, the stronger they grow. They must be cut down quickly, without hesitation or second thoughts. We are at war. Then we must make it a true war. War is about killing. That's all there is.))

I can't say that didn't interest me. But it was a terrible sign, too. See, of all the candidates, only Alloran had resorted to human-style politics. Cheap shots, personal insults, and other tricks like that. Andalites, when left on their own, didn't do those sorts of things. They just gave you the facts. If Alloran was the one acting un-Andalite-like, it could mean that something non-Andalite was helping him.

**CHAPTER 26****  
****Jeanne**

James and Ronnie leaving so suddenly worried me, but there was not much to be done about it. They had to take the opportunity that was given to them, it was unlikely they would get another. ((What now?)) Melissa asked.

((Earlier, we discussed options with the two of them,)) I answered. ((They will be taken to the Emperor's Pool ship. There, they will make a connection to the Pemalite ship, through which Erek can hack into the Pool ship's computers and gain any information we might need.))

((I guess that means we should get to the ship, then,)) Melissa decided.

((Not just yet. We are low on morphing time. We should return to Erek's room, demorph, and then return to the ship.))

It took a bit longer than we would have liked, but Melissa and I found our way back to Erek's room. ((Erek, it is us. We need to enter.))

Erek slid open the door. We buzzed in and began to demorph. "Just the two of you?"

((Ronnie and James went off with the Emperor in his Dart ship,)) Melissa explained.

Erek was silent for a moment. I was finished demorphing by the time he said, "You're sure that's where they went?"

"Certain," I assured him.

"Then there's a problem. The Emperor wasn't on that Dart ship. He's in a meeting with the Ssri'Kai high command right now."

((But we saw him enter the ship,)) Melissa argued, still demorphing. ((He went in, Ronnie and James followed.))

"Did you see the ship take off?" Erek pressed.

"No," I admitted. "We returned here because we were short on time."

"This isn't good," Erek worried. "Is it possible that the ship is still here?"

((RONNIE! JAMES!)) Melissa shouted. There was no response. ((Yeah, I think they left.))

"The Emperor would have had to get off shortly after he got on. But why would he get on the ship in the first place if he had a meeting scheduled with the Ssri'Kai?" I wondered.

"You don't think it could have been a trap, do you?" Erek asked.

"How?" Melissa responded. "There were four flies following him for a couple hours. How could he set a trap for that? How could he even know?"

"No one knows what Nak senses are like," I admitted. "If he could see us, he might have sent Ronnie and James into some sort of trap. He would know that flies do not belong on this planet. He would know he was being followed."

"We need to warn Ronnie and James," Melissa decided. "How can we do that?"

"If they're on the Dart ship, I can use the Pemalite ship to access some of the monitoring systems - security cameras and such. If they're near some sort of communications device, we might be able to warn them. I might be able to do this if they're on the Pool ship, but that would be much harder and probably too late," Erek suggested.

Melissa and I morphed to Hork-bajir again and followed Erek out of the building. No one questioned him - they assumed he was on official business. He must have had some way to know where the ship was because he never had to stop to ask us. We took a lift out of the canyon and then Erek really started moving. It looked like he was walking casually, but we had to run to keep up with him and were not doing a very good job of that.

Erek was already inside of the ship by the time we reached it. He had his hands pressed against the tree in the center that commanded the ship. "Got them. They're in one of the Dart ship's transport ships," Erek informed us. "Bringing them online now."

A small hologram of James appeared next to the tree. He jumped visibly when it appeared. "Erek. You scared the hell out of me, you know that?"

"James, you are headed into a trap," I said before Erek could respond. "The Emperor is not aboard that ship. We have reason to believe you were detected and deliberately led into that ship. Most likely, they will kill you when you reach the Pool ship. Or just destroy your ship remotely."

"That's a cheery thought," James muttered. "Any suggestions?"

"You might try-"

((Please, let him figure it out for himself,)) a voice interrupted. I turned around to see the Emperor standing inside the doorway of the ship, flanked by five Hork-bajir and two Ssri'Kai.

"Your Highness," Erek began. "I was just-"

((Spending some quality time with my enemies. Yes, I can see that. Nak eyes are very good. There was always something I did not trust about you, Emrush One-Six-Nine. I think it was how you always urged nonviolent solutions, passive plots and schemes. You never once suggest any course of action that might result in someone getting…hurt. A Yeerk like that always reminded me of those peace movement idiots. And here I find you, in an unknown ship, warning my enemies of the trap they fell into. What to do with you?))

Melissa and I were still in Hork-bajir morph. Perhaps there was some way out of this. Some way that could help. I was trying to think of something, but ran out of time when the Emperor concluded, ((I would love to know who it is that you were contacting, but I think that letting you live would be far too dangerous. I am afraid I will just have to have you killed instead.))

**CHAPTER 27****  
****James**

This was bad. You're probably getting tired of me saying that. I'm getting tires of saying it too. When things get better, I'll stop, I promise. I wanted to stay and see how things played out for Jeanne, Melissa, and Erek, but Ronnie and I didn't have the time to sit around and watch. We had to get off of this ship.

"Well, you heard the Emperor. We need to think up a way off of this ship. Any ideas?"

Ronnie tapped the 'dashboard' of the transport ship. "Looks to me like we've already got a way out."

I shook my head. "They'd just blow us out of the sky. And where would we take the ship? The only place to go is the Pool ship, and the only way to get into there is in this ship."

"So we hijack this one and fly right in."

"Something tells me they'll be ready for that. They'll have some way to know if this is the genuine vessel or stolen."

"You could try making a suggestion instead of shooting all of mine down."

"Okay, okay…" I thought. "We need to stay on this ship in order to get into the Pool ship…but we have to make them think we're not on the ship…"

"If they see the transport ship leave, they'll probably think we're in it and blow it up. They think we're dead, and we hide in here and get into the Pool ship," Ronnie suggested.

"Almost there," I agreed. "But how to hide? They'll be ready for the usual bugs and stuff, they haven't fallen for that in years." I pressed my fingers to my temples. "What if we morphed crew members?"

"It'd be great, until they found the real crew members tied up down here or whatever we do with them," Ronnie noted.

"So what if we didn't tie them up? What if we send them out in this transport ship. The Yeerks blow it up and bury our evidence for us. Then we just hide out and hop onto the Pool ship when we get there."

Ronnie nodded. "Sounds like a plan. How do you want to do it?"

"What's your battle morph?" I asked.

"Tobias hooked me up with a polar bear."

I smiled. "Nice. Okay then. You hide in here, in morph. I'll wait outside for the guards. They'll see me and come over here. Then you come out and knock them out. We'll morph them, shove them in the ship, send it out, and wait."

"Sounds like a plan. I didn't know you had it in you."

As I stood outside of the transport ship, completely exposed and waiting for Hork-bajir to come around the corner looking for me, I started to think that my plan probably wasn't a very good one after all. Ronnie had never actually used his battle morph before and might not be able to handle the instincts right away. And since he'd need to be able to snap into action as soon as the Hork-bajir found me, that could be a serious problem.

I leaned against the side of the ship, next to the door, trying to appear casual. It took about three minutes for the Hork-bajir to make their way down there. There were two of them; a bit of luck for once. I tried to think of something witty to say. Since I couldn't think of anything, I just waved at them and smiled. "Hi."

The Hork-bajir said something in his language and raised is Dracon beam. "Um… I was sort of hoping you'd come a little closer," I commented. The Hork-bajir just smiled one of those disturbing smiles they have and took aim.

A section of the wall next to me, the part that made the door of the ship, stretched open. Ronnie barreled out. The Hork-bajir turned their weapons on him but it was a bit late for them. Ronnie slammed into the first one with all his weight. Hork-bajir are sturdy, but nothing stands up to a polar bear's charge. The Controller literally flew into the wall and dropped. He didn't move.

Ronnie and the second Hork-bajir circled each other. They were too close for the Hork-bajir to use the Dracon beam, so it was a battle of blades. I casually strolled over to the downed Hork-bajir and pried the Dracon beam out of his hands. I turned to shoot, but by the time I was turned around, the other Hork-bajir was on the ground, missing an arm. Ronnie was barely bleeding. I guess that practice he was getting was actually paying off.

I squatted down and acquired the Hork-bajir. Ronnie demorphed and did the same. Together, we hauled the two of them into the ship. It wasn't wasy, but Ronnie and I are both pretty big guys. Once we had them in the ship, we had a new problem. "James…do you have any idea how to launch this thing?" Ronnie asked.

"Um…sort of," I lied. I'd seen other people fly ships before. I knew the general area where things would be. After some trial and error, I got the thing turned on and set it to launch. Ronnie and I stood outside of the ship in Hork-bajir morph, watching it exit the Dart ship. We watched through the window in the bay as, only a minute later, red Dracon beams lanced from the Dart ship and disintegrated the transport shuttle.

Ronnie and I made our way to the bridge. The captain nodded to us. "They tried to escape in the shuttle."

"We know. They barely got out before we could catch them. We will not fail again."

The captain shrugged. "It is of no importance. They are dead, that is what matters. The Emperor will be pleased."

((Not for long,)) Ronnie muttered to me.

**CHAPTER 28****  
****Al**

Alloran's Scoop was within the city. In most cultures, that would be a good thing. It would place him near the important people and places. But among Andalites, this just meant that he had little room to graze and was forced to stay in a cramped environment. I am sure that he did not really mind - he spent decades on various ships and in much worse conditions, but it was still considered an unappealing living situation among my people.

David and I were there to investigate Alloran. We were trying not to jump to conclusions, but that was difficult. Alloran was being very un-Andalite in his conduct. Perhaps his home would yield some information. I was very nervous, I will admit. Yes, I had done more dangerous things and infiltrated much more secure places, but it was difficult not to be a bit intimidated at the thought of what Alloran might do if he caught us searching his Scoop.

His Scoop was unguarded, which was only natural. Andalite politicians did not need to worry much about security. There was no need to fear assassination or other foul play, not here on the Homeworld. And even in his growing age, Alloran was still extremely deadly, not only in his natural form, but also because of the many horrible morphs that he had acquired during his time as a Controller. David and I flew past the Scoop three times in our bird morphs, making certain that Alloran was not home.

((All clear,)) David reported as we flew inside and demorphed. There was not much in the Scoop, which was to be expected. Aside from the things the average Andalite has in his Scoop, there was a small, off-white cube on a shelf in an alcove - Alloran's computer. I went to that first. David went outside to keep a lookout for Alloran. While I did not think he would resort to violence, we certainly did not want him to find us here.

The security on Alloran's computer was top-notch. I am a bit ashamed to admit it, but I had a bit of difficulty cracking it. This was security crafted by the finest Andalite experts - technicians whose skill rivaled mine and whose experience far surpassed it. I would not have been able to do it, had it not been for a few tricks I picked up during my time on Earth. Still, the process took far longer than it ever took me before. I wasted nearly half an hour to break through into Alloran's files.

Some of them were of great interest. There was information about Prince Tobias and some of the Animorphs, notes on things that we said or did. Alloran was certainly suspicious about the situation on Earth, but nothing in his files suggested that he had figured out what exactly was going on. He half-suspected a fight with the Yeerks but ruled it out early on - he assumed that if something like that were happening, we would request help. Currently, he suspected something involving covert security work with Tri-I. I would have to be sure to tell Prince Tobias that so he could reinforce the conclusion.

There were notes on the current war as well, including some very detailed maps. Those were also something Prince Tobias would like to have - they held information about the Andalite formations that Prince Tobias currently did not have. It was difficult to remind myself that I was not there to gather military intelligence. I tore myself away from the military information and searched some more.

There was a large file on Captain-Prince Asculan-Semitur-Langor. He had always been a very prominent figure among the Andalite military. He was the one who commanded the massive fleet that drove the Yeerks form the Anati world, and he was the one who led the Andalite fleet to Earth at the end of the First War. Though it was not a widely publicized fact, anyone who even halfway cared to investigate it knew that Alloran was his father.

I sifted through everything I could find on Alloran's computer, but there was nothing to indicate that he had been compromised. Certainly there was no affiliation with the Yeerks, though we had never really suspected him of something like that. Alloran would never work with Yeerks, for any reason. We were more inclined to believe there was some manipulation from another party, most likely Vladimir Putin. But there was no evidence of that in Alloran's computer. Nothing to explain his behavior.

I turned off the computer and closed my eyes, resting them for a minute. ((Are you satisfied, _Aristh_?))

I flinched and halfway raised my tail before I recognized the voice. Then my blood turned cold. I swiveled one stalk eye, though I did not nee sight to know that Alloran had caught me. But why hadn't David warned me? Surely Alloran could not have sneaked past him. Unless something happened to David…

As though he read my mind, Alloran shook his head. ((David is fine. Just sleeping. If I were you, I would pick a more reliable lookout next time. I'll ask you again: are you satisfied?))

He was not angry. In fact, he was not even surprised. ((You seem to have been expecting this.))

((I think I've gotten to know the Animorphs pretty well over these long years. I would have to be blind, deaf, and stupid not to think that your arrival here was just a coincidence. I know that your Prince is up to something and he's sent you to do whatever it is he needs done.))

((You do not seem upset about it,)) I commented.

((As I said, I've gotten to know the Animorphs well. I know that whatever it is you think you're doing, you have all our best interests at heart. I do not appreciate the invasion of my privacy, but I am certain you had your orders. Have you learned what it is you came to learn?))

((No,)) I answered simply. ((You do not run your campaign like an Andalite, War-Prince. You do not conduct like one of our people. You are acting like…))

((Like a human? A Yeerk? Where do you think I learned politics, _Aristh_? I learned it from the Visser in my head. If I applied all he taught me, Lirem and the others would be dead. If you are worried about my integrity, I can tell you now that it is indeed compromised. But that happened a long time ago.))

It made sense, certainly. Spending so many years as the Visser's host would certainly change how Alloran dealt with politics.

((It is contagious, as all corruption is,)) Alloran sighed. He gestured towards the computer. ((Have you seen the latest news feeds? I am not the only one who plays dirty. A lot of old information has just come to light.))

((What kind of information?)) I asked.

((Nothing too shocking - at least, not to us. Just the usual skeletons in my closet. Details about my conduct in the Battle for Hork-Bajir. Some information about my life afterward. Someone has also disclosed the truth about Arbat, unfortunately.)) Arbat was Alloran's brother. He had lost his mind and, in a crazed attempt to end the war, had tried to release a virus on Earth that would have killed not only the Yeerks on the planet but the humans as well. Naturally, the Animorphs had stopped him, but the Andalite people knew nothing of it.

((Naturally, Lirem is the only one who could have known about some of that, especially the truth about Arbat,)) Alloran sighed. ((Of course, he denies having anything to do with this 'sudden leak', but you and I both know the truth, don't we?))

I nodded. Alloran's conduct could be explained. His political advice had come long ago, from one of the Yeerk Empire's most ruthless Vissers. But now Lirem was conducting himself in the same manner. If Alloran had gotten his lessons from the Yeerks, where had Lirem learned this?

**CHAPTER 29****  
****Melissa**

Jeanne and I stared at the Emperor. We were in Hork-bajir morph, which was a plus. Maybe he thought we were normal Yeerks - traitors, but still Controllers. I didn't think he got a good look at James. He might not know that the Animorphs were here. It didn't matter much anyway, whether he knew who we were or not didn't change our situation. There were six Hork-bajir and the Emperor against the three of us. Two, since Erek couldn't fight at all.

((Melissa, do not engage them,)) Jeanne warned me.

((We might be able to take them. Or at least fight our way out,)) I argued.

((That isn't it. You saw what happened when Ronnie attempted to train in this ship. It prevents that. According to what Marco told me about it, it will eject those who fight inside of it.))

((Nothing to say?)) the Emperor commented. ((Perhaps you'll change your minds in the torture chambers. The talent runs in my family, you know, and I am sure you've heard tales of my brother's methods.))

((If they eject us, we can run away,)) I argued.

((But if we flee, they can take the ship.))

((Not if we gut their Emperor. They'll have bigger things to worry about. Erek can fly the ship to safety.)) Wanting to fight wasn't about being brave or reckless or anything like that. Not for me, at least. It was just that I couldn't just stand there. I had to _do_ something. In the First War, I just stood around, waiting. Not again. Never again. So now I had to act, even though I knew that I should be terrified.

Jeanne was silent. Before she resumed speaking, the Emperor continued. ((You are a silent group of traitors. But you will talk soon enough.)) To his soldiers, he added, ((Seize them. I want to know who they were communicating with.))

The Hork-bajir advanced, three towards me, three on Jeanne. Rachel told me once that she had fought off three Hork-bajir in a Hork-bajir morph; her second time in that morph, actually. She could do it with only a little experience; maybe I could, too.

((Melissa…)) Jeanne warned.

((They'll slice us up before the ship ejects them,)) I argued, walking towards the Hork-bajir. ((Let's not give them the chance.))

((But if we just wait…))

I didn't bother to wait. I slashed at the first Hork-bajir before he could attack me. My wristblade cut deep, slashing across his chest. He fell back. Another one swung a kick at me. I blocked it with one forearm and struck back with the other. He dodged and before I could strike again, the other Hork-bajir was on me.

I couldn't fight both of them. I wasn't good enough. I could maybe hold them off, if I gave it every ounce of strength and concentration I had. I could block their blows and evade their blades, but I couldn't fight back. I couldn't win. If I kept on like this, I'd be killed, and so would Jeanne. Jeanne..where was she? Standing calmly, I was sure.

One of the Hork-bajir attacking me fell. Jeanne stepped into his place and attacked the remaining one on me. While he was distracted, I finished him off. Only then did I take a moment to look at Jeanne. She was bleeding badly. One of her blades was barely attached to her body, and she had a large gash on her face and neck. The three Hork-bajir who had gone after here were right behind her. All had blood on their blades and none on their bodies.

That was when I realized what had happened. Jeanne had rushed through her attackers to help me. She had risked her life to save mine. She was certain that if we just waited, the ship would solve our problems for us. But instead of waiting, she dove through her enemies to help me. In that moment, I didn't feel so alone anymore.

The Emperor had ignored us and moved towards Erek. ((Emrush One-Six-Nine. What do you think you are doing?))

"Oh, me? Just erasing this ship's memory core so you can't get any information at all from it."

((You test my patience.))

"You pass better than your brother, I'll give you that."

Before the Emperor could respond, a new voice broke in. The voice of the ship's computer. The instnat it started speaking, I found that I couldn't move. "Oh…it seems someone has gone and started a fight. That's a shame, we hate to ruin a fun day with violence. I'm afraid you'll have to leave the ship for a bit. Maybe you can come back some other time for a game and a snack."

A sudden force pushed me out of the ship. Jeanne and the Hork-bajir came with us. We tumbled to the ground in a tangle of blades and blood. Slowly, we all climbed to our feet, none of us sure what to do now. ((We need to get back into the ship,)) I said.

((Erek will be fine,)) Jeanne assured me. ((The Chee are nearly indestructible.))

I was going to say more, but my speech was stolen from me. In one swift motion, the Pemalite ship lifted off the ground. An instant later, it was in orbit, out of sight. Whether Erek took off or the Emperor did I have no idea. If it was Erek, we'd probably be fine. If the Emperor had the ship…

((This is going to be a problem,)) Jeanne sighed.

**CHAPTER 30****  
****Ronnie**

Yeerks are idiots. Sure, there are some smart ones, but by and large, they're stupid. They didn't ask us any more questions to make sure we weren't morphs. They just accepted it and moved on. James and I took turns demorphing in what passed for the bathroom and no one got suspicious. The journey wasn't all that long, or all that difficult. In a matter of hours, we were at the Pool ship.

A Yeerk Pool ship is like a big spider. A huge, spherical body with all the main stuff in it. Three long, jointed 'legs' with engines and stuff. Weapons, hangars, windows, and other stuff studded the whole thing. They're a lot more impressive the first time you see them. But I was stationed on one near the end of the First War. I was actually there when the Animorphs took the ship over. You've seen one Pool ship, you've seen them all.

Our Dart ship docked in a private hangar, no doubt reserves specially for the Emperor. "You are all on leave for the remainder of the day. You are to report back here in exactly twelve hours." It wasn't exactly twelve hours - it was the rough Yeerk equivalent. But I figured I'd save you the trouble and translate. No one wants to be stuck dealing with alien time, after all.

((Okay…)) James began. ((We need to get to some sort of computer station and get whatever information we can about this attack. Where it's going, when it's going to happen, who's going to do it. All that good stuff.))

((There are a few options. Do you know how to hack a computer?))

((Me? I can barely microwave popcorn.))

((Same. Okay then. We'll need to use a terminal that's already logged in with high-level access. Something on the bridge would do it. Or in the Pool security room. No other locations would have people who have that kind of access. But they're the two most heavily guarded rooms in this whole ship.))

((So basically, what we need is someone to log into a terminal with the right access?))

((Yeah.))

((So maybe we can lure one to a better location. Some sort of tech emergency that would get them to send someone with the access, but not any guards or anything.))

((Yeah…something like that. Maybe we could do something to the Emperor's ship.))

((Like what?))

((Like…if something happened to the docking clamps. The Dart ship wouldn't be able to leave, and the Emperor wouldn't be happy about that. I don't know how we'd cause something like that, though…))

((Too bad Al isn't here… Oh, hey, here's an idea. Instead of breaking the clamps, let's not and say we did.))

((That works.)) The Emperor's hangar was deserted now. None of the crew wanted to hang around, they all had other things to do. Probably feed. And this was a private hangar, so we had it all to ourselves. Perfect. I walked over to the terminal and keyed in the basic Yeerk access code, hoping it hadn't been changed. We were in luck. I couldn't access anything important, but I could send messages. I sent a message to tech support saying that I had accidentally locked the docking clamps and needed higher access to override my lock. They would be here in a few minutes.

James stood by the terminal while I lurked in the shadows. He'd handle this, but I was backup just in case. The tech support guy, a Human-Controller, showed up with one Kelbrid. That was fine. He said something to James about an impending execution when the Emperor found out what happened. James didn't make much reply. As soon as the tech support guy logged in James, smashed his head against the terminal. I jumped out of the shadows and landed on top of the Kelbrid.

The Kelbrid rolled over, it's weight pressing down on me. I didn't let go, though. Instead, I dug my wrist blades into its flanks. Acid blood sprayed over me, burning me, but I would hold on until my wrist blades were nothing but smoking nubs. It didn't come to that, though. James sank a blade into the Kelbrid's throat before it cried out. It had been snarling, but not calling for more assistance. Kelbrid only did that as a last resort.

James and I dragged the tech support guy and the Kelbrid into a dark corner of the hanger where they probably wouldn't be found until the tech support guy woke up. Then we went back to the terminal. ((Where to start?)) he asked.

((Where,)) I decided.

James flipped through some files until he came to the basic attack plan. The fine details were protected by even higher-level access, but we didn't exactly need those. According to what we could find, the attack would come at a planet called Grunn-Nesh. The data on the planet listed the Ssri'Kai presence as 'minimal' and that the most common race was called the Grunn - there wasn't much information about them.

The 'when' was a little iffy and depended on the arrival of the army's commander. He was expected very soon, maybe even tomorrow by Earth standards. James managed to find the name of the commander. ((Huh…sorry, Ronnie, looks like you won't get a crack at Guraff after all. He's sitting this one out.))

((That's surprising. I was sure he'd be here for something this important. I guess the Visser isn't letting him off his leash. Who's the commander?))

((I don't know. Someone called Naronn One-zero-zero. Pretty high rank there. Just above Sub-Visser status by the old Empire standards.))

((I've heard of Naronn,)) I said. ((It's pretty hard not to. He was the Empires best pilot.)) Before James could ask, I added, ((Even better than Guraff. Naronn was rumored to be the best pilot in the whole galaxy. And if he wasn't it was pretty hard to tell. He was never shot down - not even once, in over a hundred missions.))

((What's he like as a commander?)) James asked.

((I've always heard good things. He's no genius strategist or anything, but he can get things done. He's competent, at the very least. Which might be more than we can say for the commanders on Grunn-Nesh. We'll have to look out for him.))

((What's his host like?))

((Taxxon. He refuses to take any other host.))

((Yeah?))

((Yeah. He says the Taxxon is all he needs to do what he does best. Let the Yeerks who need them have other hosts. Taxxon is fine by him. The fact that he volunteers for Taxxon duty makes me worry. He's got to be made of hard stuff.))

((Maybe. But all the Yeerks are pretty squishy once we get them out of their skulls.))

((Yeah. Let's just hope we can get him out of his.))


	6. Chapters 31 through 36

**A/N**

Hey, guys. Sorry for not updating for a long, long time. Long story short, a lot of stuff happened in my life. You'll probably be glad to know that I've finally been able to move in with my fiancé, Gina and have never been happier. I don't have Internet at home, though, so I have to go to the public library to access it, and unfortunately, that blocks FFN, so I haven't been able to post this yet.

FFN being blocked means, also, that I can't reply to reviews, so if you reviewed something of mine and didn't get a response, that's why. I can read them just fine, I just can't reply. So if you really want my response to a review, email it to me, or send me a message on Neopedia, or something; I'm not difficult to get in touch with.

So yeah...sorry about the delay. Enjoy and such.

P.S., you can thank John3Sobieski for uploading this for me.

**CHAPTER 31  
David**

I fell asleep. There's not much to say aside from that. I was supposed to be keeping watch for Alloran and I dozed off. I just couldn't keep my beady little eyes open. Have you ever felt so tired that it's an effort to keep your eyes open? It was like that. I don't know why I was so exhausted. I'm worried that maybe I'm just getting old.

Al didn't say anything about it; I appreciate that. I didn't need to be reminded about it. He figured that whatever shame I was feeling over it – which I'll admit was a lot – was punishment enough. Andalites are like that. We had a job to do anyway. Lirem was acting as suspiciously as Alloran, and that couldn't fly.

Naturally, someone as powerful as Lirem had his own private grazing fields outside of his Scoop. There was no one else around as we landed and demorphed from our bird forms.

((Okay, Al; this time, we go in together. If Lirem's not home, you get into his computer. If he is, let me do the talking. I know how guys like him think.))

((Agreed,)) Al nodded as we entered the Scoop. Lirem was standing before the desk, his hand on a small, turquoise oval that was probably the latest computer available on the Andalite homeworld. He didn't notice us come in. Maybe age dulled his senses – I could understand that. My ears and nose aren't what they used to be.  
((Lirem,)) I called. He dropped the computer and spun around, tail snapping into a combat position. At least he still had his reflexes, for the most part. ((We need to talk.))

((Is there some emergency?)) he asked, lowering his tail.

((I'm not sure yet,)) I admitted. I kept an eye on his tail. If he _was_ working with our enemies, he'd get violent when we called him out on it. I hoped Al could take him. I've seen Al decapitate Kelbrid; Lirem should be no problem, but people can surprise you. Especially people who feel trapped. ((There's something we need to discuss.))

((Is it the insubordination of entering my home uninvited?))

((I've got my orders,)) I answered simply.

((Yes, well...I'm hereby revoking those. I am busy, 'human' and do not have time for interruptions just now.))

((Unfortunately, Councilor, I'm not part of your army.))

((Are you saying that War-Prince Tobias did not send you?)) he pressed.

I thought about it. And about how Putin had asked us to see to some things here. ((My orders come from a different source, Councilor,)) I answered. ((And the one who sent me is very concerned about this election.))

((This election is no business of your people,)) Lirem answered simply. ((Now, remove yourselves or I will have you removed.))

((Who the Andalites choose as their leader isn't my business; but if the Yeerks are involved...then it's everyone's business.))

((Yeerks? What are you talking about?))

Time for a gamble. Politics was always about bluffing. ((You're not acting like yourself, Lirem. Yesterday, you were polite, civil, simple – like any Andalite should be in an election. And then you started playing dirty. Spreading dirty rumors and truths best left buried. That doesn't sound like an Andalite to me.))

((What are you implying?))

((I'm not here to imply anything. You're not acting like an Andalite, Lirem. I don't have any doubts about why. The question is just whether they took you by force or if you made a deal with them. How long have you been a Yeerk puppet, Councilor?))

Lirem's tail twitched but he didn't strike. ((I am no such thing! How dare you!))

((Did they come and take you or did you go to them, Lirem? You knew you couldn't win this one on your own. You needed help. You were so desperate to cling to your old power that you made a deal with them, didn't you?))

((Now see here! I-))

((Or did they take you? Maybe I'm talking to a slug right now.))

((I am **not** a host!))

((We'll know that in three days, won't we?)) I posited.

This time, his tail came into an attacking position. ((I am no Yeerk puppet, you insolent-))

((Then explain yourself,)) I interrupted. ((You are very suddenly not acting like yourself. Having a slug in your head is a better explanation than most.))

((Regardless of what you may think -))

((Oh, it isn't just me, Lirem. At least, it won't be. As soon as the rumor of this gets out, it's over for you. No one's going to give a vote to someone they even suspect is a host. And before you get any ideas,)) I added, ((there are five people who know we're here. So if we happen to...disappear...the rumor will be pretty firmly cemented.))

Lirem's tail sagged. ((What do you want, child?))

((Just the truth, Lirem. You're not acting like yourself. Why?))

LIrem sighed. ((It was Jaham. This was his suggestion this...distasteful business.))

((Jaham?)) I asked.

((He would like to be the Head, of course, but he is satisfied as the leader of the War Council. If I could keep my position, he could keep his. If Alloran or that child Caysath is elected, we will both lose our authority. We have fought this war for a long, long time, rat. Jaham and I know what we are doing. It is best that things remain as they are.))

((Your people seem to disagree,)) I answered.

((Sometimes, they do not know what is best,)) he answered.

((And you do?))

((Yes, child; I do. As does Jaham. It is for the good of the people that we remain in power. So we had to discredit Alloran – Jaham said it would not be difficult. We only had to remind the people of the things they already knew. Alloran was our most dangerous competition, you see. But with him discredited, there are no troubles for us now.))

((Caysath,)) I answered.

((He is young. Inexperienced. Unproven. In a time like this, the people will not put their lives in the hands of one such as him. One with experienced is needed, and that is what Jaham and I possess.))

((David,)) Al said privately, ((if 'playing dirty' was Jaham's idea...))

((Yeah,)) I agreed. It meant that Lirem was, at least, still an Andalite. Jaham, on the other hand... ((Guess it's off to candidate number three.)) 

**CHAPTER 32  
Jeanne**

Melissa and I picked ourselves up off of the ground. Several Hork-bajir lay around us. Some were fine, some were badly wounded. There was no sign of Erek or the Emperor. That meant they were both in the ship, and Erek was powerless to stop the Emperor from doing whatever he wanted. Pemalite security measures, particularly on the ship, tended to be pathetic.

One of the Hork-bajir lying next to me started to stir. I stamped my foot down on his throat. Melissa looked at me, her head cocked to the side. ((The less people the tell, the better our chances are,)) I explained. I wish I felt as casually about it as I sounded. This sort of thing was in line with my training; I found it distasteful in the extreme.

Melissa joined in, and we managed to finish off the Hork-bajir before any of them could rise to defend themselves. I wish that made me feel good instead of sick. ((Okay...so what do we do now?)) Melissa asked.

((Ronnie and James are on that Dart ship, headed for the Pool ship. Hopefully, we warned them in time for them to do something. The Emperor has the Pemalite ship and Erek...)) I trailed off.

((Erek's safe; Chee are nearly indestructible, right?))

((Yes, though...I fear that the Emperor is going to learn of there existence very, very soon.))

((We need Erek and the ship,)) Melissa responded. ((The Emperor has to take the ship somewhere. Where would he go? The Pool ship?))

((Maybe,)) I admitted. ((Though if he did, I do not know how we could follow him. The ship is so fast he could be there and back by now.)) A minor exaggeration, perhaps, but the Emperor could easily find himself anywhere in the galaxy in a short amount of time. How could we find him?

((Does he know that?)) Melissa asked.

((Know what?))

((How fast the ship is. I mean, he has to stay nearby, right? To meet with the Ssri'Kai. He can't just go on a joyride in his new car. Not far anyway. He'd have to come back here.))

((Perhaps, but it is possible that while investigating the ship, he will discover its speed. He could be anywhere.))

((Maybe, but where would he want to go? Even in that ship, the Yeerk homeworld is days away, and he's got business here. I'd bet he'll come back here, probably really soon. I just don't know where.))

((Erek will undoubtedly be with the ship and the Emperor. If he is nearby, I might be able to locate him,)) I answered. ((We need to get back to Erek's room so that I can get my iHolo. We can track him with that as we did when we first arrived.))

((How were we doing that, exactly?)) she asked.

((All of the Chee are connected to an advanced intranet they call the Cheenet. Al hacked into the Cheenet through the Pemalite ship and wrote an app that allowed me to track Erek through his signature in the Cheenet.))

((Is it normal for us not to tell each other when we're doing things like that?)) Melissa asked. I detected a strong note of bitterness in her voice.

((I am sorry. I did not think it was particularly important,)) I answered. ((Had I known you were interested in the technical aspects of how we were locating Erek on this planet, I would have informed you.))

((It might be nice to be informed every once in a while.))

It was fairly obvious there was something deeper here. ((What haven you not been informed of?)) I asked carefully.

((Where to begin? How about someone mentioning that there were standing orders to give Jordan, Sara, and Kristina morphing power? None of you thought that was important?)) I was about to respond, but she did not give me the chance. ((Or how about giving me more information on that whole Nartec thing? All I knew about that was what Jake told me, and that wasn't a mission briefing. It's like everyone here knows a whole bunch that I don't and nobody tells me anything.))

((There is a lot to tell, Melissa. How can we know where to begin?))

((Maybe with your list of other people to add to the team,)) she answered. ((Are there others you've got plans for? Maybe Marco's butler. Everyone's parents? Family pets?))

((There are no others, as far as I am aware.))

((You sound way too calm about this.))

I began walking back towards the Ssri'Kai city, demorphing as I went. I would need to arrive in morph, but if I was wounded, questions would be asked. "I trust our leaders, Melissa. I would think that you trust Jake, at least. If he does not tell you something, he must have reasons for it."

((Even things that could help keep us alive, like information about the Nartec?))

"Jake and Tobias are human, Melissa."

((One of them is.))

"Both make mistakes, and both forget things. They still need to adjust to this new dynamic. There was a time when there were only six of them – of us. Everyone was present for just about every mission. Everyone already knew everything. Neither of them is accustomed to informing other Animorphs of past missions. It just does not occur to them most of the time. It could very easily have been a simple accident."

((And you just accept that and move on? Like it didn't happen?))

"A great many things have happened to me that I wish did not,)) I answered. ((Missing a few bits of information is the least of them. There are bigger battles to fight, Melissa, and we cannot afford to fight among ourselves."

((Is it fighting to question Tobias and Jake? You said it yourself: they make mistakes.))

"Yes, they do. And questioning is fine. But they are not here to question now. And none of this will help us locate Erek and the ship."

((This is all falling apart, you know,)) Melissa said from behind me. I could hear the usual sounds of morphing. When she spoke next, it was with her own voice. "This whole mission. Who knows what David and Al are doing? You heard what the Emperor said about allies on the Andalite planet. They could be in danger and we know nothing about it. We've got no clue if Ronnie and James are still alive. And here we are, stuck on a planet that can't even know we exist while the freaking Yeerk Emperor runs around with the most advanced piece of technology we've ever seen."

"Things...could be going better," I admitted.

"It's just...none of this is how it's supposed to be, Jeanne. It's not like Jake's stories at all. In his stories...everything usually turns out alright in the end. Even when they didn't win, they always made it away, always in one piece. Always together. Now how many pieces are we in? How are things going to be alright? We've still got to stop the Ssri'Kai leaders from getting infested and we know nothing about that. We need to find Erek and the ship, too and I don't know which is more important. We're alone here, Jeanne. And now we're stranded. If we stole a ship right now – as if we even could steal a ship from a bunch of Ssri'Kai – it'd take us months to get home. This...it's not right."

"Things are not as they once were," I answered. "This war is not the First War. We are not the first Animorphs. It is necessary for us to adapt to the way things are now. You and I have an advantage in that, Melissa."

"I know we do, but still...this just isn't..."

"I know what you were looking for when you joined us, Melissa," I said to her. "Some things have changed. But some have not. And the Animorphs...we have always been here for each other. The war we fight is a lonely one, and there are very few we can turn to. Only each other. Few others know, and no one else can understand. We are not perfect, but I would walk through fire for you as quickly as I would for Marco." I hoped that was true. I wanted to believe it was. I wanted her to believe it, too.

"Erek counts as one of us too, doesn't he?"

"With everything he did, I believe he does."

"That means he's our first priority, then. The Ssri'Kai aren't going to get Yeerked any time in the next few hours. Let's find us a robot." 

**CHAPTER 33  
James**

Dart ships are nice, but Ronnie and I figured that trying to make off with one of those would get us noticed. But we also figured that one of the transportation shuttles that live inside of the Darts wouldn't be missed for a little bit. We weren't expert pilots, but after our last experience, Ronnie was pretty sure he could get us to the planet. The transport was Z-Space capable and if he understood the coordinates right, the Pool ship was reasonably close to the planet, just waiting for the signal to attack.

The Emperor's hangar was still deserted, so we figured we'd grab his ship and be on our way. There was only one left in the Dart ship, since the Yeerks destroyed the other one when we launched it a few hours ago. A thought struck me as we slid into the pilot and co-pilot seats. "Do you think Yeerks ever listen to the stereo while flying?"

Ronnie gave me a look then punched the engines.

It wasn't a very fun ride. First we dropped through a Raminite door on the underside of the Emperor's ship, hovering just above the hangar floor. Then we shot forward out into space. I guess whatever fancy thing the Yeerks have to account for G-forces wasn't switched on because my cheeks were being pulled backward. The ship made some distressed-sounding noises that I assumed meant we were being followed by Bug fighters. "That isn't going to be a problem, is it?" I asked Ronnie.

"Probably not," he answered. A moment later, the ship lurched. For a moment, I thought we stopped. Then I took a look at the viewers. What should have been black was white – for that matter, so was what should have been green or blue or any other color. Everything was white. Z-Space. I didn't know exactly how it worked, but I knew enough to know that even entering directly behind us, just seconds afterwards, in the exact same spot, the ships wouldn't exactly be able to follow us.

"Do they get radio stations in Z=Space?" I asked idly.

Ronnie gave me that look again.

I'm not sure how much time passed in Z-space. There isn't anything to mark time or distance there, and if there was some kind of Yeerk clock, I didn't know how to read it. It felt like forever, but things seem to take longer when you're stuck in a box with a guy who keeps glaring at you.

We emerged within sight of a medium-sized planet with a lot of grey and pink. I guess they weren't fans of chlorophyll. We weren't alone, of course. There was one very large ship in orbit above the planet. It looked like an X, with the ends curved forward. Piercing the center was what looked like a very large spike, tapering to a sharp looking tip at the front. The rear appeared to be some sort of engine, judging from the glow.

"Capital ship of some kind, judging by the size," Ronnie commented. I shrugged. It looked big enough to me. There were several smaller ships, according to our sensors.

"Let's give them a big, friendly hello," I suggested. "Even if they don't understand it."

Ronnie pressed some buttons. "This is-"

A sharp screech cut through my ears. It sounded like someone cutting through a rusty pole with a chainsaw. I had heard that sound before, unfortunately. "Oh good, it's a Ssri'Kai ship." I leaned towards the control panel. I had no idea what Ronnie had been speaking into. "Could you repeat that?'

Unfortunately, they did. I think my ears bled a little.

"Ronnie, I don't suppose this ship can translate..."

I wish he'd stop giving me that look. "Alright...looks like we're not going to get any discussion done. Let's try to dock with them."

"Excuse me?"

"If they don't blow us into little pieces, we might be able to communicate with them in some way," I explained.

"I don't like that 'if'."

"It doesn't tickle me, either." Nevertheless, Ronnie guided the transport ship towards the Ssri'Kai capital ship. I guess they figured we didn't have any weapons – or weren't capable of doing any significant damage even if we did – because no one shot at us. Ten smaller ships came from somewhere in the capital ship to escort us. They were about our size, with the same general design as the capital ship, but the forward-points of their central spikes were flattened.

We followed them into a hangar on the ship. "You got records of the stuff we got from the computer, right? I don't want to come here without proof."

Ronnie gave me a new look this time, one that involved raised eyebrows. "I was supposed to have proof?" My jaw bounced off of my knee. "Just kidding. I...let's go with emailed...myself a copy of everything. We can show it to them."

Ronnie and I emerged from the transport ship to see more Ssri'Kai than I've ever wanted to see. Now, don't get me wrong, I know these ones weren't Controllers and probably weren't going to try and cut me open. But my first experience with them was not a pleasant one. I still remember that Apostate ripping out Cassie's liver... It's not something I like to think about.

They were armed, I realized after a moment. I guess it never occurred to me that creatures so deadly at close quarters would carry weapons, but they had them. At first, I wasn't sure it _was_ any sort of ranged weapon, but I took a closer look and was convinced. It was basically a cylinder about two feet long and five inches thick at the far end. It slowly tapered until it almost looked like a sharp spike. It was actually hollow, though. I guess that's where the painful stuff came out. Each Ssri'Kai had one strapped to its left wrist, with a little ring around their biggest claw that I assumed fired the thing. I got a pretty good look at them, seeing as about thirty of them were pointed at me. Another thirty were aimed at Ronnie.

"Do you want to say it or should I?" I asked him.

Ronnie sighed. "You can. You're the one in charge of this whole thing."

"Alright." I turned to one of the Ssri'Kai. "We come in peace."

One of the Ssri'Kai stepped forward out of the crowd. I noticed that they weren't all the same. They had the same body shape, of course. Poisonous quills covered their bodies except for a bit of scale around their wrists and the base of their arrow-shaped heads. Black, expressionless eyes gazed at us levelly. They had clawed, hooked hands and dome-shaped feet I knew could stick to just about anything. Pencil thin lines of color ran all along their dark-blue bodies. Some were red, some were purple, some gold, some white, some blue, some green...you get the idea.

The one who stepped forward had gold lines running along his body, just like all the Apostates we saw. I wondered if there was something to that. Maybe it indicated rank or something. There was something on his neck scales that reminded me of a collar. He tapped it a few times. To my surprise, English came out of his mouth instead of that ear-killing screech he gave before. "Welcome to the _Grunn'Kire_. Our sisters on Ssri told us that strangers were in the sector. You were not invited here. Expect neither welcome nor violence. Why have you come?"

"Those strangers you mentioned?" I began. "We've got some information to share with you about them." 

**CHAPTER 34  
Al**

Jaham-Estalan-Forlan was certainly one of the most powerful Andalite leaders – and one of the most powerful individuals in the known galaxy. He was the leader of the War Council, a subgroup of the Electorate. The people select the members of the Electorate by popular vote, and choose the Head of the Electorate the same way. The members of the Electorate, in order to facilitate smooth government, create various councils as needed to oversee various aspects of the Andalite world. There were councils for scientific advancement, councils for the arts, and, when the Yeerks began their war, the War Council was formed. Jaham had been the head of the War Council for a long time. Now, he apparently thought it was time for something greater.

David and I were in our bird morphs, floating in the sky above Jaham's scoop. Unlike the other Andalites, Jaham had guards. Four Andalites were keeping watch in the field outside of his Scoop. Did he have something to hide or was it just the paranoia of a life-long soldier?

((Al, I'm starting to think something...))

((What is it, David?))

((Alloran and Lirem are pretty much out at this point. Between all the dirt on Alloran and Lirem being so unpopular, it's between Jaham and Caysath. And I...really don't think Jaham winning is a good idea.))

((We are not here to interfere with due process,)) I reminded him. ((Only to make sure Earths enemies do not manipulate events.))

((Jaham was the one who wanted to quarantine Earth, Al. I'm not sure I don't consider him an enemy. He was willing to sell us all out to the Yeerks. He even ordered Ax to help them do it –or at least not to help us fight back. He isn't what the Andalites or the rest of the galaxy need. They need someone who's going to stand up with their allies not leave them on their own.))

((While I do not disagree, David, that is not our place.))

((Call it going above and beyond the call of duty.))

I had difficulty believing what I was hearing. David was actually suggesting that we determine the course of the entire Andalite population, and a great many others besides. ((It is not our place,)) I repeated. ((It is not a decision we can make. Perhaps if Prince Tobias said differently...but even them, I do not know...))

((This one's a no-brainer, Al. The guy who wanted to sacrifice his allies versus the guy who stayed and fought for the Hork-bajir. No contest who's the better choice.))

((Then let us hope that the Andalite people can see that for themselves,)) I answered. ((They are far from ignorant or foolish, you know.))

((Yeah, but I just...don't trust democracy sometimes,)) he answered. We were both silent for several minutes. Then, ((So do you want to handle the guards or should I?))

((I do not have a plan for them. It is unusual for an Andalite to utilize body guards, even one such as Jaham.))

((Suspicious,)) David agreed. ((I can handle this. You be standing by, I don't know how long it will keep them distracted.))

((What are you going to do?))

((You'll know when it happens.)) Sometimes, I think my family might be rubbing off on David.

David flew off in another direction while I continued to hover over Jaham's scoop. I knew that David wanted Jaham to lose the election; he was hoping we would find something to drive Jaham out of the running. To an extent, I was as well. But I had to be objective about the situation. If Jaham was clean, it would be up to the people to decide.

Five minutes later, I saw something odd. A small fire started a distance away from Jaham's Scoop. Not close enough to threaten it yet, or to be seen from it, but close enough that when it was noticed, the guards would have to go extinguish it.

Another few minutes passed as the blaze grew. At last, I saw Jaham emerge from his Scoop and speak to one of the guards. Then the guards headed in the direction of the fire. Jaham returned to the Scoop. I swooped down and landed in the grass outside. I was about to dimorph when I heard something. An Andalite voice, one I did not recognize.

((..dispose of them?))

((It would be dangerous,)) Jaham answered. ((I believe they are here on orders from war-Prince Santorelli. Removing them would attract his attention, and you know how...troublesome...his kind can be.))

((I am not worried about the humans. They are well in hand. Our ally on Earth is seeing to that well enough.))

((With all due respect, Captain-Prince, underestimating them is not only foolish, it is nearly suicidal. Disaster is inevitable unless the most extreme caution is taken.))

I did not dare demorph now or move closer. They were clearly discussing David and myself and whether or not to kill us. Jaham, at least, was urging caution. But if he knew that I was listening... I could not edge closer to see who he was speaking to. Sneaking up on an Andalite is impossible. What was going on here? Jaham was still leader of the War Council. Why was he speaking to this Captain-Prince as though to a superior?

The unseen Captain sighed. ((Are they any threat to our immediate plans?))

((I do not believe so, Captain-Prince. They cannot stop what is to come.))

((Then leave them be keep your eyes on them. I do not want to add the complication of a War-Prince with suspicions. And troublesome friends.))

((It will be so,)) Jaham answered. There was a pause in the conversation. Then, ((Is there any word regarding progress on Ssri?))

Ssri? That was a Yeerk operation. These Andalites were involved with them, clearly. What was gong on here?

((The units will arrive within hours, along with their commander. All is going according to plan. That is all you need to know, Jaham.))

((As you say,)) Jaham agreed, sounding disgruntled.

((AL! They're coming back! Where are you?)) David called in my head. I flapped as quickly and quietly as I could manage. It would be a disaster if they knew I was listening. Jaham would surely try to kill us.

((David, there is a situation.))

((Yeah?))

((Jaham appears to be part of some sort of conspiracy in league with the Yeerks.))

David was silent for a few moments. Then, ((You know...I'm almost glad to hear that. At least it means we can expose him and make sure he doesn't win.))

((I am not certain about that. He was speaking to a Captain-Prince. That is a very powerful individual, and I expect there are more. There is no way to know how far this conspiracy extends.))

((Probably to Lirem, at least,)) David answered. ((He and Jaham have always stuck together, haven't they? No idea who else might be involved...))

((We will have to inform Prince Tobias. I fear he might need to come personally.))

((Yeah, I think so. In the mean time, we'll need to think about what we can do to help out Caysath. I know you don't want to meddle, Al, but...))

((This is why we are here. Do you know how to rig an election, David?))

((I've got a few ideas)) 

**CHAPTER 35  
Melissa**

None of the Controllers stopped us to ask questions when we returned to the Ssri embassy. At first I thought that was weird. Wouldn't the Emperor have told them what happened? I mentioned it to Jeanne, though, and she explained it to me.

((The Emperor believes we were traitors. He will not trust most of his subordinates, so he will not have told them what is going on,)) she answered. That meant no one stopped us on our way to Ereks' room. We got a little lost a couple of times, since we didn't know the layout of the Ssri embassy, but we made it there eventually. There was a Hork-bajir standing outside of the door, with a Dracon beam at his side.

((A guard,)) I noted. ((He probably knows something's up.))

((Agreed,)) Jeanne acknowledged. She spoke to the guard. "The Emperor sent us to aid the investigation."

The Hork-bajir made some sort of facial expression. I couldn't tell what. Slowly, he nodded. "As His Highness commands." He opened the door. Ereks' room had been virtually destroyed. The furniture was in pieces, and anything that looked like a computer or document or anything else that might contain information was torn to pieces or being poured over by the six Hork-bajir and one Taxxon in the room.

((Didn't know they still had those,)) I commented about the Taxxon.

The guard closed the door behind us. With him inside of it, I noted. ((Jeanne, I think this guy's suspicious.))

((I get that impression, though I cannot imagine why.))

"They say they were sent to help," the guard told the others.

I thought about it for a moment. ((Well...'aid the investigation' isn't really something most Hork-bajir Controllers would say, is it?))

The Taxxon hissed something in its ear-splitting language that I didn't understand.

((Perhaps, but...))

One of the Hork-bajir nodded in response to whatever the Taxxon said.

Something else occurred to me. ((Hey, these would be the ones the Emperor actually trusts, right? The ones he's sure aren't traitors?))

((Yes.))

The other Hork-bajir were starting to look at us funny. I was getting a bad feeling.

((Then wouldn't these be the same Yeerks he'd trust to take over the Ssri'Kai leaders?))

There was a pause. ((Yes, I believe so.))

The guard's hand tightened around his weapon. I noticed that the others were unarmed.

((So taking these guys down would be a good idea, right?))

((I believe so,)) Jeanne began. That was all I was waiting for. I like to take action. I can't just...stand around. Not this time. But I don't want to be reckless. Since Jeanne agreed...

I spun around and slashed at the guard's throat. He jerked back, but my kneeblade caught him in the gut. He doubled over, dropping his weapon. I grabbed it off of the ground. When I turned around, it was already a scene of madness. Jeanne already had one of the Hork-bajir down; she must have caught him by surprise. Another one was bleeding badly, stumbling away from the fight. I wasn't too surprised. Jeanne was actually trained for this sort of thing. But she didn't have a chance against four Hork-bajir.

One was far enough away from the fight that I could be sure I wouldn't hit Jeanne. I fired. He stumbled and fell. I guess the thing was only set to stun. The others were too close for me to shoot at safely. I didn't want to hit Jeanne, even if it was only on stun. I dropped the gun and rushed in, slashing at one of the Hork-bajir.

He spun and blocked me, countering with a swipe across my chest. It drew blood but I pulled back before he could cut too deeply. I kicked at him but he dodged it. He lunged forward with his head, thrusting his horn-blades at me. I jerked to the side and slashed at his neck. I made a cut but he got out of the way before that went too deeply. Not your average Hork here.

Jeanne dropped another one, but I couldn't pay too much attention to that. Mine was slashing at me with one blade after another. Arm-elbow-foot-knee-horn-foot-elbow-wrist, over and over again. I blocked or dodged most of them, but more than a few cut me, too. Most of them not too deeply, but I was still losing blood quickly. So was he.

Jeanne finished her second Hork-bajir and turned to help me. It only took a few seconds after that. He turned to face Jeanne and I sank an elbow blade deep into his back. I think I cut something in his spine. He fell to the ground and Jeanne finished him off. I was breathing heavily. ((Not fair,)) I complained. ((I only got-))

Suddenly, my chest felt like it was burning. My body was numb, and blackness was swimming at the edge of my vision. What... Then I saw it. The Taxxon had picked up the Dracon beam. The injured Hork-bajir was just heading out the door. Jeanne leapt over me and landed on the Taxxon with both feet. Green-yellow goo exploded all over the place. I noticed a smoking hole in the ceiling where the Taxxon's shot had missed Jeanne. She picked up the weapon, thumbed the switch, and fired at the limping Hork-bajir. He disappeared.

Jeanne stuck her head out into the hallway. ((No one appears to be coming, but it is impossible to be certain. We must act quickly. Can you demorph?)) She was already starting to do that. I concentrated, though it was hard to do it over the burning in my chest. I was glad I didn't set the weapon to a higher setting. Slowly, I resumed my normal body and the pain went away.

Jeanne located her iHolo. It was intact, though the Yeerks probably were going through it. They'd know far too much, then. They wouldn't be telling anyone, though. "Erek is near," Jeanne said, surprised. "Two miles to the west of here. The Emperor must have put the ship somewhere the Ssri'Kai weren't likely to look."

I climbed to my feet. "Okay...Let's go get him back. I think it's probably a good idea for us to get out of here anyway. I don't want Ssri'Kai walking in to find this."

Jeanne nodded and we remorphed. The iHolo easily fit in the palm of her claw, so if she held it right, no one would see it. We passed a pair of Ssri'Kai heading towards Erek's room as we left. Maybe they heard the disturbance. Or maybe they were just walking.

Once we were outside of the embassy, we had to make our way out of the canyon, which wasn't as hard as it might have been. We couldn't walk on walls like the Ssri'Kai, but Hork-bajir can climb. We managed to climb up the side of the canyon without too much difficulty, then we were running across the flatlands. Hork-bajir can run a couple miles without even breathing hard, which was definitely good for us. We made it in less than ten minutes.

The Pemalite ship was waiting for us, tucked into a smaller crevasse with fewer crystals than the city. There was a smaller tower on top of the tallest crystal, and a few Ssri'Kai walking around on them, but I got the feeling these ones had already been infested by the Yeerks. They didn't bat an eye at the Pemalite ship.

Or at the Blade ship next to it. 

**CHAPTER 36  
Ronnie**

The Ssri'Kai didn't have a whole lot of forces in the area. Their thinking was that a planet so close to Ssri didn't need to worry about any sort of attack, and if they did they could call for help. That was the thinking, at least. We quickly found out that their z-space communications weren't getting through. I knew there were ways of blocking and intercepting those transmissions. I guess the Yeerks were close enough to do it.

Most of the fleet was made up of ships provided by the local population, the Grunn. Their ships looked like amorphous blobs, with weapons seemingly placed anywhere. Apparently, though, they weren't completely random because their ships were identical. They were about half the size of the Ssri'Kai ship. I wasn't filled with confidence.

When I was a Controller, my Yeerk wasn't a military type; not really, at least. He mostly did paperwork, so to speak. When he joined the Peace Movement, he made sure that important things got misplaced, lost, sent to the wrong person, etc. Anything he could do to disrupt operations. It was surprisingly effective. He was starved to death when the Visser learned what he was doing.

Even so, I knew a little bit about the Yeerk military – it would have been impossible not to. Pool ships were powerful, but Blade ships were more dangerous. Their weapons were just as dangerous, and they were more maneuverable. They were the real assault ships of the war effort. We had to deal with two of them, plus a Pool ship and all of their fighters. We had one Ssri'Kai ship, six Grunn capitals, and their assorted fighters. Technically, we had them outnumbered.

I was...not confident.

James and I waited on the bridge. We weren't going to be very useful here, unfortunately. The Ssri'Kai were better tacticians and actually knew what they were doing. We were just there to provide information about the Yeerks. There was one Grunn with us, acting as a liaison between the Ssri'Kai and the Grunn fleet. He was entirely hairless, pale orange, about five feet tall, with a lower body almost like a kangaroo's, but without the tail or pouch. His upper torso was muscular, but not overly so. They had thick arms, though I couldn't tell if it was muscle or fat. Their hands were also thick, with just two fingers and a thumb. Their heads were almost human shaped, with a wide mouth and a pig's snout for a nose. They only had one eye, which sat at the top of their heads on what looked like a roll of fat folded over on top of the nose. Not a particularly pleasant race to look at, but I've seen worse.

Not a chance against a Kelbrid or a Hork-bajir.

The section of the bridge we were on was raised about ten feet above the rest of the deck, where Ssri'Kai stood before various displays. We were on a flattened spire that jutted into a cylindrical room. Ssri'Kai stood on the walls and ceiling as well as on the floor. That was normal on the ship, though it was disorienting. Not something I was going to get used to.

The Yeerks dropped out of Z-space a few miles from us. In space, that doesn't mean much. One of the Ssri'Kai called to the Captain, who stood next to us. He responded in kind. On one of the holographic displays, I saw a bar start to fill. It took a full minute, but when it was done, the Captain nodded. A beam of pale-blue light lanced forth from the tip of the ship's spire. I couldn't tell how thick or long it was, but let me tell you: judging by the planet we were over, it was one big laser. It hit the Pool ship dead-center.

One of the Ssri'Kai called something. The Captain nodded and explained to us. "Their shields are down."

The Grunn moved to engage. We would be playing defense. The big laser had to cool down , and then be charged again, but we had other weapons in the mean time. The Blade ships and Pool ship were out of range, though. They were releasing fighter squadrons. The Grunn did the same, with ships that were as asymmetrical and amorphous as their capital ships.

I didn't have much faith in the Grunn pilots, but I was still shocked. They first Grunn squadron met a squadron of Bug fighters. There was no chance for the Grunn. They were simply obliterated. Unlike most Bugs, these ones had shields, for one thing. But the pilots were just...completely out of the Grunn's league. When they got a little closer, I could figure out why. The squadron leader was flying a Bug that was slightly different from the others. There was something slung underneath it, and the Dracon cannons were bigger. The whole ship was painted a blazing shade of red.

"Naronn," I said to James. I expected him to be commanding the battle, but I guess he left that to the other commanders. They'd follow his orders, I knew. His squadron wheeled through another Grunn squadron, annihilating them without any losses on their side. "Captain, that squadron is going to rip the Grunn apart piece by piece. Their pilots don't have a chance. You need to send in your fighters."

"As you say," The Captain acknowledged. He accepted our advice readily, assuming we knew more about the Yeerks than he did. I liked the guy. He called out in his language and moments later, five squadrons of Ssri'Kai fighters flew from the ship's hangar.

The Blade ships were engaging the Grunn capitals, with the results I was expecting. Two of the Grunn capital ships were already drifting apart, and one of the others was badly damaged from a fight with the Pool ship. We fired the giant laser again and this time, it cut straight through the center of the Pool ship, coming out the other side.

"Aim lower," James advised. "The engines and Kandrona generator are under the ship." He pointed at them on the display. "Take those out and they're dead."

We moved to engage one of the Blade ships as it finished another Grunn capital. The Ssri'Kai fighters met Naronn's squadron. It wasn't going very well for them. For each Bug they shot down, they seemed to lose four of their own. I heard Naronn was phenomenal, but I didn't realize just how good he was. Tobias was probably the best pilot I ever saw in action, and he couldn't have touched this Yeerk. Not in a thousand years. It would be like a trout fighting a polar bear. The gap between them was insurmountable, and the Ssri'Kai didn't have much more chance either.

Another pair of Grunn ships broke apart under fire from the Pool and Blade ships. This was a massacre. How could things be gong so badly? The Ssri'Kai were supposed to be great. If we had more Ssri'Kai ships, it might have been something else... As it stood, things did not look good. "Any brilliant ideas?" I asked James.

"Not a one," he muttered. "Man, how do Jake and Tobias do this stuff?"

We fired the giant laser again. This time, it pierced straight through the engines. I hoped it took out the Kandrona generator, too. The Pool ship started to wobble, unstable now. We were close enough to one of the Blade ships to bring all our weapons to bear. We opened fire from guns I didn't even know we had.

That was when two new ships appeared. One I didn't recognize. It was huge – maybe three times the size of our own ship, which was about twice the size of the Pool ship. This thing was MASSIVE. It was a star-burst pattern, completely asymmetrical, with huge spires like skyscrapers jutting out at all angels. It was like a giant spiked ball, almost. One the size of a moon. We're talking Death Star sized. "What the hell is that thing?" I demanded.

James shrugged. The Captain shook his head. "I do not know."

I almost didn't notice the second ship next to it. I probably wouldn't have, if the sensors hadn't pointed it out. As shocking as the first ship was, the second one really confused me. Because, see, this was one I recognized. An Andalite Dome ship. "Help?" I asked.

"A Dome ship? Has to be," James answered. Just before the Dome ship opened fire on us.

We were taking fire from a Blade ship, a Dome ship, the Pool ship, and our fighters were being torn to pieces. I didn't know what the star-bust ship could do and I didn't want to. There was no chance now and the Captain new it. He said something to his officers that I didn't understand, but I could figure it out.

We were falling back to the planet. We had no chance in orbit. We'd take them on the surface.


	7. Chapters 37 through 42

**A/N**

Remember, kids; I can't respond to FFN messages at the moment, but I love feedback, so if you want responses, try Neopedia or something.

**CHAPTER 37**

**David**

Tobias and Rachel had already been on their way to us when Al sent them a quick message saying we needed to talk to them personally, so it didn't take long for them to arrive. In spite of Al's assurances that our communication channels were secure, I insisted we not tell them anything about Jaham at all. Not until we could be sure no one could overhear us. So when they arrived, Al and I met Tobias and Rachel in the most secure place we could think of. The Reliquary; in orbit.

Both of them looked happier than I'd ever seen them and that kind of made my skin crawl. Rachel isn't a depressing person to be around, but she isn't usually all smiles and hugs. And while she wasn't handing out hugs – not to me, at any rate, though Al got a few – she was still smiling a lot. She usually only does that when some Yeerks are going to die. As jarring as that was to see, seeing Tobias was downright disturbing. Tobias never smiles – ever. Not by accident, at least. Now it was like he couldn't stop. And he actually hugged us – both of us. He looked better-rested than he had since the day I re-joined the Animorphs. I was almost happy that I was going to wipe the smiles off their faces – they were really creeping me out.

After the usual introductions and pleasantries – us inquiring about their trip, their health, the impending birth of their child, them asking us how we were doing and all that - Tobias got down to business. "You sounded pretty urgent when you called, so we came a bit faster. What's going on?"

((Alloran's running his campaign like a Visser, but that's because he learned from one. Lirem's playing dirty, too, on advice from Jaham. And Jaham... Al heard him talking so a Captain-Prince we haven't been able to identify. From what was said, they're in league with the Yeerks and are somehow involved in whatever the Yeerks are doing on Ssri. There's some sort of conspiracy going on, and we can't be sure who is involved. We suspect Lirem, since he and Jaham have always worked closely together, but we don't know who else. There are more than a dozen Captain-Princes in the fleet, and it could be anyone.))

Tobias nodded slowly. "Anything else?"

I stared at him for a moment. ((What do you mean anything else?))

"Is there anything else you learned?" Rachel asked.

((Nothing more important than an Andalite-Yeerk conspiracy,)) I answered. They were taking it all too calmly.

"What did you learn about Caysath?" Tobias continued.

((We have not yet had the opportunity or cause to investigate him,)) Al answered. ((He, at least, is acting like any upstanding Andalite would.))

"That's good, at least," Rachel answered. "I liked Caysath. He actually took advice from people who knew what they were talking about. I think I've only seen that in maybe five Andalites, and that's being generous."

"Looks like it's between Caysath and Alloran," Tobias answered. "My endorsement might help. I've got some credibility with the Andalites, at least. Not enough to swing a whole election, but I can help a bit."

"Alloran's got the experience, but I don't think he'd listen to others," Rachel commented. "I think Caysath might be best. What do you think, guys?" she asked us.

((I...I think we really need to talk about this conspiracy!)) I answered.

((I believe it is the necessary subject of conversation as well,)) Al added, sounding incredibly distressed.

Slowly, Tobias shook his head. "Forget about that, both of you. Let's talk about whether Alloran or Caysath is the better option."

((What do you mean forget about it?)) I demanded. ((We can't just forget-))

"It would be best if you could," he answered, cutting me off. The Tobias I knew was breaking through vacation-Tobias now. "Forget that you heard anything about a conspiracy."

((Prince Tobias,)) Al began.

"Yes, Alloran. That is my rank. War-Prince. And as your War-Prince, I am ordering you to say no more about conspiracies. And as your brother, I am asking you to obey that order completely."

I looked at Rachel. She didn't looked surprised at all by any of this either. Slowly, I realized. ((You...you knew about this already. Both of you. What the hell is going on here?))

Rachel shook her head this time. "David, do you trust us?" she asked.

((Trust you? I put my life in your hands every day. Of course I trust you. But something like this...I can't just ignore this, guys. I can't just pretend this isn't happening. I need to know.))

"There are things I can't tell you, David – things Rachel and I can't share with anyone," Tobias answered. "But if you trust us at all, then trust me when I tell you that...we aren't the only ones with a war to fight, and we aren't the only ones who have to keep it a secret."

((Come on, Tobias, you have to give me more than that.))

"I can't, David. Especially not you."

((Especially me? Why especially? Do you not trust me to-))

"You're too smart, by far. If I gave you even a scrap of the truth, you'd probably manage to figure the rest out. I wish it could be different, but this isn't something that's up to me."

I looked at Rachel. She shook her head violently. "Don't even think about it, David. I wouldn't have told you as much as he did."

I turned to Al next. I knew he wouldn't say anything to anyone. Not after a direct order from Tobias on top of a personal request. If anyone was going to be digging into this deeper, I'd have to do it on my own. Whatever Tobias and Rachel knew, whatever they thought, this was too important – too dangerous – to leave alone. Sometimes, especially lately, Tobias makes decisions that he doesn't really have the right to make, choices that effect entire planets and even more. No matter what they thought, this wasn't something I could just forget about and ignore. It was simply too vital. Yeerks and Andalites working together. And not just any Andalites – Jaham and Lirem were once the Andalite leaders. Something so deep was just too big for me to leave up to anyone else. Not until I knew more, at least.

But Tobias and Rachel didn't need to know that, now did they? So I just nodded slowly. ((Alright, guys. I trust you. I guess I'll have to on this one. What do you want to do about the rest of it?)) Inside, I had stopped paying attention. I trusted them to do what they thought was best – I knew their hearts were in the right place. And their heads usually were as well. But this was just too big to abandon. I would have to find some way to investigate, some way without any of the other Animorphs knowing.

And I didn't have a whole lot of time to do it, unfortunately. Not while I was working with the Animorphs, at least. Soon – maybe in one month, maybe two or three, but soon – I would have to give up the fight and my ability to morph. Then what would I do?

I couldn't just abandon the fight. Not after what I did and what I tried to do. I had to find some way to keep fighting, keep helping. I would find a way. I always did.

**CHAPTER 38**

**Jeanne**

Melissa and I had fought Ssri'Kai before. It was not a pleasant experience. We would not have survived were it not for the intervention of a Tri-I operative named Carl. Even bullets had limited effectiveness against them. An open attack against them was doomed to failure. There were at least a dozen Ssri'Kai here, and even if they did not tear us to pieces, all were armed with needle-like weapons that were most likely energy cannons of some kind.

((I don't think we can just walk on in like we've been doing,)) Melissa commented. ((Bug morphs?))

I shook my head. ((Too far for flies,)) I answered.

((Panther and leopard?)) she suggested. I almost rejected it out of hand, given the size of the morphs, but then I thought about it. The crevasse that the ships were hidden in provided dark shadows around the edges. And both Melissa's panther morph and my leopard were stealth hunters. It could work. And if we were discovered, being in those morphs would certainly be better than being morphed as bugs.

((I believe that would work)) I conceded. A few minutes later, we were a leopard and a panther hunching in the shadows of the crevasse. Melissa blended in a bit better than I did, but I believed our camouflage was sufficient. Slowly, we crept along the edges of the crevasse until we were in the shadow of the Blade ship.

((Who do you think owns this one?)) she asked me.

((Certainly not the Visser,)) I answered. ((The Emperor would never involve him in something like this. I do not know who this might belong to. It may just be the Emperor's, though it is more likely he would go with something grander.))

I had left the iHolo behind, buried in a small hole I made in the ground, but according to it, Erek was now in the Blade ship. Certainly the Emperor was as well, along with a Blade ship's worth of Hork-bajir and possibly even Kelbrid. It was not a pleasant thought.

((Probably lots of bad guys in that thing,)) Melissa commented, somewhat paraphrasing my thoughts. ((You think these morphs will still cut it?))

I thought about it. These were fast, quiet morphs. Battle was almost out of the question – if any alarm was given we would be torn to pieces. Perhaps our Kelbrid morphs could get through unremarked, but perhaps the Kelbrid could recognize non-Kelbrid. Or perhaps, this being Ssri, these Yeerks didn't bring any Kelbrid with them, in which case everyone would know what we were instantly. I knew that Hork-bajir could tell the difference between one another, and they would know that we were not supposed to be here.

((I believe so,)) I answered. ((We must endeavor to remain unseen as much as possible and not alert the Yeerks to our presence.))

Melissa cocked her head to the side and looked at me. ((Yeah, I kind of guessed that.))

We lurked in the shadows beside the Blade ship for several minutes, waiting for a chance to enter. Soon enough, part of the ship stretched open and a group of Controllers – some humans, a pair of Hork-bajir, and a couple Taxxons – emerged, heading for the Pemalite ship. We darted into the Blade ship behind them. One of the humans turned around suddenly. He sensed us, I knew. He suspected.

He stared back into the sip. Melissa and I huddled on either side of the entrance, pressing ourselves as deep into the shadows as we could get. After a moment, he turned around and continued on to the ship. The entryway closed behind us.

I knew my way around a Blade ship fairly well, and one as just like another. ((They will have Erek in the holding cells,)) I told Melissa. ((Or the torture chambers, located on the same level. Follow me.)) We kept to the shadows, moving slowly and only when we were sure there was no one around. Our keen senses of sight, hearing, and smell kept us ahead of whoever was moving about on the ship. Mostly humans, I noticed, and Hork-bajir as well as a number of Taxxons. No Kelbrid to be found.

We were almost to the dropshaft when Melissa smelled something. ((Two Hork-bajir behind us,)) she warned me. I looked at the dropshaft. If they were going for the dropshaft, they would see us in it before we reached the desired level. We were in a hallway with no rooms; only the dropshaft on one side and the Hork-bajir in the other direction. They would certainly see us.

((Into the dropshaft,)) I decided. ((Down one level, under this one. Hopefully we can hide from them.)) We jumped in and rode it down only for a few seconds, to the level beneath our previous one. As soon as we landed, I turned around. And looked straight at a Taxxon and a Hork-bajir. The Hork-bajir was opening his mouth to cry out. The Taxxon was raising a Dracon beam.

I lunged at the Hork-bajir, my teeth sinking into his throat. His cry of alarm came out as a gurgle. An instant later, a black-blur struck the Taxxon, tearing it to pieces in a matter of seconds. I gave a last bite to make certain my Hork-bajir was dead. ((Back into the shaft,)) I suggested. ((Down seven levels.))

We fell at the normal speed, at first. But as we reached the appropriate level, we slowed down until an unseen force pulled us in to a hallway. It was a very long hall, lined with holding cells, all of which were empty at the moment. There were no visible guards. Most likely, the Emperor was not expecting an attack of any kind. Or he did not trust his guards. I was certain Erek would be here, though.

At the far end was a door made of the same black material as the outer walls of the ship. Beyond it, I knew, were the torture chambers. Melissa and I ran towards the door. It was sealed, naturally. But I knew more than a little about Yeerk security. ((Melissa, I will need some time.))

((Gotcha,)) she responded, slinking back to the dropshaft in order to watch for anyone coming. I turned my attention to the red square set in the center of the door. A basic thought-interface. Like what the Andalites used, but about half two generations behind. The Yeerks had not improved this technology since Seerow gave it to them. Of course, that only made sense. Yeerks were parasites. They stole and controlled; they did not create.

It took me several minutes to penetrate the security measures, but once I was through, unlocking the door was as simple as thinking about it. ((We are ready,)) I answered. We ghosted through the door into a large chamber. I would rather not describe some of the implements I saw in that room. It looked a collection of the Visser's birthday presents.

There was no one in the chamber. Or the next one. At the third door, though, Melissa and I could hear thought-speak voices. The first I did not recognize. ((...anything like it. Certainly no race in any known sector of space.))

((The origin of the machine is a mystery,)) a second voice agreed. This one I recognized. The Emperor. ((This one came to us on Earth. It infiltrated out ranks easily. And as you have seen, it is capable of projecting an flawlessly realistic hologram and enduring incredibly high bursts of energy. The Dracon beam at full power only made a small hole in it, and that was only after prolonged contact.))

((I can detect no thoughts from it, but that is to be expected,)) the first voice noted. It sounded almost feminine. ((What do you wish done with it?))

((You will take this machine to the Homeworld and present it to the Council of Thirteen on my behalf. Inform them that it was discovered on Earth – presumably, it joined during my brother's disastrous campaign against the humans four years ago. Be sure they understand, Inspector, that it infiltrated my brother's forces. There are most likely more of them among his troops. Inform them further that I recommend that _you_ be sent to investigate his forces and discover how many more are machines like this. There must be more.))

((Of course, your Highness,)) the Inspector answered. ((But...forgive me, but does this not overstep our authority under the New Order?))

The Emperor chuckled. ((My brother might believe so, but that is far from the case. A Visser now reigns over his sphere of influence with absolute power, but it is up to the Council of Thirteen to appoint Vissers. And if we discover that one is an incompetent – by, say, allowing hostile machines to infiltrate his forces – it is our place to replace him, do you not agree?))

((Absolutely, your Highness. I believe that the Council will be most pleased by this find.))

((As do I, Inspector. Now, see what the technicians have discovered about that ship. I believe it to be of the same construction.))

((Of course, Highness.))

We heard some shuffling in the next room. Melissa and I pulled deep into a corner of the chamber. The lighting was very dim. A creature without eyes adapted for dim light would not be able to see very well. It should not be able to see us.

The creature that emerged from the door was almost human in shape, though with arms and legs elongated. Its hands ended in long fingers that were shaped almost like spear-tips. They were thin near the hand, then they widened and tapered to sharp tips. It was very thin, almost emaciated. Its neck was exaggerated like its arms and legs were. The jaw was the most striking part. Its jawbone extended almost half a foot above its head, looking almost like horns. It had a thin, vertical slit for a nose and four small, red, tilted eyes. Its flesh was a burnt-orange color and it was clothed from neck to foot in a dark blue robe.

((What is that thing?)) Melissa demanded.

((I have no idea,)) I admitted. It did not look at us as it exited the chamber and had, in fact, left the door slightly open. I could see inside, to the Emperor. He was still clothed in his own red robe. Thee was a creature strapped to a chair-like apparatus next to him. It looked almost like a metal and ivory dog. Erek the Chee - without his hologram.

((You are an interesting creature,)) the Emperor told him. ((I have never seen anything quite like you. You are immensely strong, that much is obvious. A dozen Hork-bajir could not budge you. You could tear me in half right now. Yet you do not. I wonder...you are a machine. Is it perhaps that you _cannot_ do it? I have never known you to harm anyone – in fact, I know for a fact that you prevented several executions that I ordered. Are you, in fact, perfectly harmless? Interesting. What race would build something so powerful, yet not allow that power to be used?))

Erek said nothing. ((Hey Jeanne?)) Melissa asked. ((It occurs to me that the Emperor is right here and his guards are not. And I've got some sharp claws right now...))

It would be impossible to miss the implication in her statement. It would have been impossible not to agree. ((As my sister is indisposed at the moment, I believe it falls to me to say it. Let's do it.))

**CHAPTER 39**

**James**

We fell back to the surface of the planet. Staying in orbit would only get us slaughtered. Here, I saw what the Yeerk computer meant when it called the Ssri'Kai presence light. There was one crystal-city like what we saw on Ssri, surrounded by a bunch of buildings that I assumed were of Grunn construction. According to the captain, this was the only Ssri'Kai outpost here on the planet. They always assumed that, being so close to Ssri, if the planet was ever under attack, the local forces could hold out until the Ssri'Kai could come to aid them. I guess this is what comes of worrying about the enemy far away and ignoring the one on your doorstep.

Ronnie and I were sitting in a small room in one of the Ssri'Kai buildings with the captain and the leader of the Grunn, who had a title I couldn't even begin to spell. Our thoughts came down pretty much to one thing. We were royally screwed. Outnumbered by who knows how many. It would take maybe ten Grunn to overwhelm a Kelbrid, and at best, the Ssri'Kai with us could handle maybe two Kelbrid a piece – turns out these ones weren't as dangerous as those Apostates we encountered. They didn't have the benefit of that elite training.

It was Ronnie who pointed out something that had been tickling at the back of my mind. "The Kelbrid are strong in close, but you've got long-range weapons. I don't know if I've ever even heard of a Kelbrid shooting back."

"I've never seen them shoot anything," I agreed.

The Ssri'Kai made some wavy movement of his neck while keeping his head completely still. I think it was the equivalent of shaking your head. "The Kelbrid _always_ bring the battle in close. We will damage them from afar, true, but we cannot count on keeping them at a distance."

"If we could-" I began.

"We cannot," the captain answered. "Once the Kelbrid begin charging, there is nothing that will stop them. And they always begin with a charge."

I shook my head. This wasn't my area, for sure. I couldn't plan battles and stuff. I could fight one, sure, and if someone told me what to do**,** I could probably manage it, whatever it was. But making plans like this wasn't my thing. There were others much better at it than I was, more clever. Jake, Tobias, Jeanne, Marco, David, Rachel..and that's just the top ones. This was a place for them**.** Not someone like me. "Do we know how they'll do what they want to do?"

"Their ships, the majority of them, will stay in orbit to blockade the planet and prevent anyone from going to get help," the captain explained. "Once the blockade is secure, they will send in transports of Kelbrid and whatever other warriors they have. They will attack here – none of the Grunn cities has the firepower to be a serious threat. Once they are victorious here, they will hunt down any Ssri'Kai survivors and systematically destroy the remaining cities. If they plan to occupy the planet, they will leave a tribe or two of Kelbrid here. They will destroy the planet."

"Destroy it how?" Ronnie asked.

"With their teeth, mostly," the Ssri'Kai answered grimly. "The Kelbrid, when left to their own devices, view everything in terms of a hierarchy of enemies. It is their racial philosophy on the universe. Everyone and everything is an enemy, waiting to be attacked. First, they will hunt and kill any non-Kelbrid, non-allied races. All who oppose them, in other words. Then, they will turn against any allies on the planet, hunting them until there are none left. Then, they will destroy the planet itself. Kelbrid can eat nearly anything living. Trees, plants, animals – even the crystals of this city. After there is nothing left to consume, the Kelbrid will turn against one another, one tribe fighting the other. Once only one tribe remains, the Kelbrid of that tribe will turn on one another until at last, there is no one left to kill and nothing left to destroy. The planet will be barren of all forms of life except for that one, single Kelbrid survivor. In the end, it will consume itself."

Ronnie and I stared at each other for a few moments. We had no idea how to respond to that. I guess the Ssri'Kai figured that out for himself, because after a moment, he continued speaking. "In this case, though, they will not let the Kelbrid hunt. Not this close to Ssri. They will destroy everything they can find from orbit. I think with that...Dome ship? … you saw. If they want to frame the Andalites, that would be the way to do it.

"How does any of this help us?" Ronnie asked.

I shrugged. "I've got no idea," I answered. What were we supposed to do? I was no general, no tactician. I couldn't figure stuff like this out. And if there was a clever trick that could save us, the captain wasn't volunteering one. "If it was up to me, I'd call up Jake or Tobias and beg them to figure it out, but we don't even have that option," I sighed.

I tried to think of what one of the others would do, how they would solve the situation. Tobias would be all for meeting the Yeerks in open battle. I'm sure he'd have all kinds of fancy tricks and stuff to pull and he'd probably come out on top, in the end. But I had no clue what those fancy tricks would be, and I couldn't even begin to think of them anyway. This battle didn't call for his style anyway. That sort of thing always ended with too many people dead anyway.

That left Jake's style. What would he do? What he'd always done. Take a small group of people he trusted and hit them hard, fast, and where it would hurt most. Now that...that I could do. It was just a matter of figuring out what would be the most painful. And that was easy enough to figure out.

"Oh no..." Ronnie began. "I don't like that look on your face. It's far too familiar."

"We're taking down that Dome ship," I answered, trying to fight back a smile.

"How do you intend to do that?" the captain asked, sounding neither for nor against the idea.

"Why bother with that one anyway?" Ronnie added. "If we're going to try to blow up something, we should at least go for the Pool ship. That's the one that will hurt the most, if we can manage it."

"They need the Dome ship," I answered. "This whole attack is a deception, remember? The Ssri'Kai have to believe it was the Andalites who did it, not the Yeerks and Kelbrid. That Dome ship has to be essential to that plan. And I think it might be important to find out how they got it. You remember what the Emperor said about allies on the Andalite homeworld?"

Ronnie nodded. "From the sound of things, they weren't Controllers. I'm not sure the Emperor even knew who they were. But they're probably the ones who managed this."

"Who could steal a capital ship?" the Ssri'Kai wondered. "That would be nearly impossible to do in any circumstance. But to do it so that the Andalites did not even know it was missing..."

"So it isn't stolen," I answered. This I could figure out. "There's only one way this could have happened. The Andalites sent it here. Or at least, they sent someone off with a Dome ship and won't be concerned when they don't report back for a while."

"So the Andalites have a treasonous captain," Ronnie sighed. "And if they've got one, they've probably got others. We'll have to let Tobias and Jake know as soon as we can."

I nodded. "If we have to meet the Kelbrid in open battle, we're probably all going to die. But if we destroy that Dome ship, they might have to call the whole thing off. Hard to frame Andalites when you don't have any around. Or any of their ships. If we can take that Dome ship out, I think we can win."

"When do we start?" Ronnie sighed.

"Tonight."

**CHAPTER 40**

**Al**

There was not much time before the election, though to be honest I did not understand why Prince Tobias and Rachel were so concerned. Prince Tobias was all but convinced that neither Lirem nor Jaham had any real chance of winning. If the People were going to elect Lirem, this election would not have been called in the first place. And in the minds of most, Jaham and Lirem were the same Andalite, and for many good reasons. Electing one would be the same as electing the other.

Still, Prince Tobias worried. He had decided that it was vital for Caysath to win this election and take control of the Electorate. While I was pleased that he was not following Vladimir Putin's "suggestion" of making certain Alloran won, I did not like the idea of anyone attempting to manipulate events in this election. Not even my prince had that right.

He knew I objected – I had made my feelings on the matter very clear to him. Though he had discussed the matter with me, Prince Tobias had also decided to go ahead with his plan. So far as I knew, he was not engaging in anything duplicitous, but I was still not pleased.

I was still lost in my own thoughts when Prince Tobias exited the Scoop in which he and Rachel had been meeting with Captain-Prince Caysath. "We're go for tonight," he told me. "Caysath's going to pull some strings and get me some air time with the Andalite people."

"Lirem is not going to be happy about this," Rachel said with a smile.

"That's what I'm counting on," Prince Tobias answered.

Prince Tobias's plan – or, rather, Rachel's plan - was simple, though it might prove effective. Tonight, he would be addressing the People and giving them his thoughts on the election and the candidates. The other candidates would be able to respond. That would give Prince Tobias the opportunity to portray them as unfit to lead.

The next few hours passed with David and Rachel coaching Prince Tobias while I provided information about Andalite customs and the candidates. Finally, we were ready. Prince Tobias stood before a projector, with Caysath, Rachel, David, and myself standing out of sight, though Caysath was standing in front of a second projector, ready to be seen by the People should that be needed.

((The broadcast will begin momentarily,)) one of Caysath's aids said to Prince Tobias. ((Three...two...one...))

A green light on the projector flicked on. Prince Tobias took a deep breath and attempted to smile. "My name is Tobias. Among you, I am Tobias-Sirinial-Santorelli, War-Prince of the Andalite Fleet, Commander of the _Reliquary_, and son of the late War-Prince Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul. I was an Animorph, one of the humans who defended the planet of Earth from the Yeerks and brought about the downfall of the Yeerk Empire and secured the freedom of War-Prince Alloran-Semitur-Corass. I functioned as the lead tactical adviser in the battle for Hork-bajir at the beginning of our current war against the Yeerk-Kelbrid-Pythagi alliance. I served under Captain-Prince Caysath in that battle. And that is why I stand before you today.

"I list those other accomplishments not to boast about myself, but so that you may know who I am, and know what matters to me. So, let me lay this all out for you. I am an Andalite – whatever my appearance. My father was an Andalite and when I was given rank in the military, the Electorate acknowledged me as one of the People. But as you can easily see, I am also human. And more than that. I am a friend to the Hork-bajir, one of those who helped lead the first of them to freedom from the Yeerks. I am an ally of the Anati, a friend to Leera, a celebrity among the Iskoort, acquainted well with the Garatrons, and even," he added with a real smile this time, "a friend of the Helmacrons."

"I have seen more worlds than many realize exist, and I consider myself a friend to all of them. I tell you all of this so that you might understand. I do not stand for one race, one army, or even one alliance. Wherever I have gone, I have always fought for one thing above all else. I stand for freedom. I stand for liberty. I stand for that which makes life worth living. I am not one to take any side but that of freedom. And as all know, the Yeerks are the greatest threat to freedom the galaxy has ever seen. Once before, we halted them, with incredible losses on all sides. Now, they are back. The Yeerks seem limitless. Their Kelbrid soldiers seem infinite. The Pythagi factories turn out thousands of ships and millions of weapons every day. The threat now is greater than it ever has been before."

Prince Tobias paused and took a deep breath before he continued. "And it is not flattery or arrogance when I say that all the people of the known galaxy look to the Andalites for leadership now. When the Yeerk shadow falls over a world, it is the Andalites they turn to. It is your people – our people – who are called to defend the galaxy against those who would enslave, exploit, and exterminate all who do not bow before them. Of all the races in the galaxy, it is us on whom the burden lies heaviest.

"And now the time has come, when the People must choose a new leader from among them to guide us through this new war. And as one of the People, I have my own decision to make. We have been presented with four Andalites, all with their own degree of prestige. But we all know that there are only two real choices. Lirem and Jaham led us through the First War. That war lasted decades and cost millions of lives. On my planet, it took only one _aristh_ and five humans to halt the Yeerk invasion. We did in three years what Lirem and Jaham could not manage in fifty. Whatever luck we had, and whatever incompetence the Yeerks may have showed on Earth, there can be no doubt that the Andalites who ran the First War are not fit to lead in a second."

That would certainly rile Lirem and Jaham up. Perhaps even more than Tobias asserting that he was an Andalite. That was a point that Jaham would certainly never concede, even if Lirem had technically made the concession when he awarded Prince Tobias his ranks.

"So it is a choice between Alloran and Caysath. Both are Andalites I have had the honor to know personally. I have fought alongside both of them, in a battle more desperate than those most soldiers see in their nightmares. I have always heard – and always believed – that you do not know someone until you have seen them when they believe they are about to die. When death is imminent and there is nothing left to hide, then you can see who a man truly is."

"I have seen both Alloran and Caysath when they no longer had reason to hide anything. And I can say that both are good Andalites, pure of intention and with faultless courage. I would be called to call either one my leader."

Prince Tobias took another deep breath. This was the plunge. "But of the two of them, I can think of only one who possesses the qualities that we need now. Alloran has a wealth of experience, both from his own time as War-Prince of the People and from the decades he spent as a Yeerk prisoner. All of that experience..." Tobias paused again. "...all of it means nothing now. Our enemy is something none of us has ever fought before. These Yeerks are different. They act differently, think differently, and have different priorities. The old tricks will no longer work. We can no longer count on the Vissers to destroy each other for us. We cannot even count on there being any Vissers who anyone might recognize. Kelbrid are not Hork-bajir. Pythagi craft are not Yeerk ships. Our enemies are different. And treating them as we once did will only lead to ruin.

"So then, there is only one choice that I can see. Captain-Prince Caysath is young, without the decades of experience the other candidates possess. That also means he is not bogged down by outdated information and notions about our enemies. He has already proven his skill as a commander, as well as his courage and strength. He is precisely the Andalite we need now.

"As I said, I stand for freedom, for liberty. I do not stand for any one man, or even any one race. But I will stand for Caysath."

**CHAPTER 41**

**Melissa**

The Emperor was alone. Unguarded. We were a leopard and a panther. No time like the present, right? I was all for rushing him, but Jeanne likes to be more subtle than that. ((Melissa, you are more difficult to see. Even with the Nak's eyesight, you should be able to blend into the darkness at the edges of the room. You go around behind him and we will hit him from both sides.))

Hard to argue with logic. I stepped quietly, letting the panther instincts take over. It knew how to move without being seen or heard. It was just like stalking prey in...wherever panthers stalk prey. The jungle, I guess. I don't know, I don't google my morphs unless I'm really curious, you know?

I was behind the Emperor in less than a minute. Erek was strapped down between the two of us, but I could clear him easily. ((Ready, Jeanne.))

((On three, then.)) She paused. Nervous, I guess. ((One, two, three!)) I rushed forward. Two steps and I was next to Erek. One jump and I was sailing over him, claw-first at the Emperor. Jeanne was a split second behind me, charging at him from behind. The Emperor's head turned towards me. There was no expression on its face. I couldn't tell if it was surprised, angry, afraid, or anything. I definitely didn't realize he was feeling smug.

SLAM. Something hit me across the face, snapping my head back and driving me off to one side. I hit the floor hard. I guess cats don't always land on their feet. I slid a few feet on my side across the polished floor. My vision was fuzzy, but it looked like Jeanne was in the same situation. I shook my head and stumbled to my feet as Jeanne did the same.

The Emperor's robe was torn now. I guess he ripped it when he hit us with whatever it was. His head was turned towards Erek. ((Friends of yours? Not machines like you, I take it. I know pain cannot break you – I doubt you feel it at all. Them, on the other hand...well, they did just walk right into my torture chambers. I may not be the virtuoso of the craft that my brother is, but I do have some skills.))

"Don't hurt them!" Erek pleaded.

((I will leave them unharmed if you answer my questions. Who created you? Who do you serve?))

I wasn't in the mood to be ignored by this guy. I wasn't some bargaining chip, I was me! I lunged at him, snapping with my jaws. Jeanne did the same. Maybe she just had the same idea I did, maybe she was just waiting for me to attack so we could strike at the same time. It went only a little better than last time.

This time, I pulled back in time to suffer only a grazing blow. Jeanne was even luckier, dodging it altogether. This time, Is aw what he attacked me with. One giant wing, covered in large, black feathers. I stumbled back as part of it struck me in the face, but I was still good to go. Jeanne attacked again.

The Emperor struck at her once more and this time, I darted in while his attention was on her. I tried to dig my teeth into his leg, but he stepped back out of the way, slashing down at me with his other wing. Jeanne lunged again. So did I. ((EREK! Run!)) Jeanne shouted. ((We will hold him.))

Erek sat up. That was all it looked like. The straps that had been over his body snapped like wet tissue paper. He ran and boy did he run fast. He was literally a blur as he took out through the door. Made me wonder how they ever caught him in the first place, but who knows? Chee have some disturbing limitations.

We kept up our attack on the Emperor, but we weren't gaining any ground. He was very fast and pretty strong, too. We could keep him from hurting us, but we couldn't do any real damage to him. A few superficial cuts, some scratches, but nothing more. ((We are getting nowhere, Melissa,)) Jeanne pointed out. She was panting, but so was I. The Emperor was sagging a bit, but he looked less tired than we did. Leopards and panthers aren't endurance fighters. They're designed for a quick, clean kill, not a drawn-out battle.

((What are you thinking?)) I asked.

((Erek has escaped. We should go, too.))

Internally, I cringed. I didn't want to just run away. But there wasn't a whole lot of choice. Guards would be here any moment, and then we'd have no chance. Our opportunity had passed and I knew it. I just didn't want to admit it. Still... ((Alright, let's bail,)) I agreed.

Jeanne lunged at the Emperor one more time. I took the chance and bolted for the door. Jeanne was a split-second behind me again. The Emperor was only inches behind her. We tore through the torture chambers, pas the holding cells, and into the Dropshaft. There were more than a dozen Hork-bajir on their way down, no doubt coming to attack us. One slashed at me as we passed. I twisted to the side and avoided the blow. We zoomed up a few levels and then bolted out the way we came. There were more Hork-bajir in the hallway in front of us. A line of them three deep and stretching across the hall blocked us.

((Jeanne, cats jump well, right?))

((Very well, Melissa.))

We leaped over them. It was close, their horn-blades almost slicing open my belly, but we made it. The Emperor slammed into the wall of Hork-bajir. We ran, out of the Blade ship and into the Pemalite ship just a few feet from it. The door shut behind us as we tore into the dog-shaped craft. The Emperor was behind us, locked out for the moment. Two dozen Hork-bajir and the orange-colored alien stared at us. Erek was nowhere to be seen.

The orange creature's face twisted disturbingly. I think it was a smile. ((Kill them.))

((Melissa,)) Jeanne began.

((Yeah, I know. Don't move.))

I stood perfectly still as twenty four Hork-bajir charged at me, blades raised. They were maybe a foot from us when they froze. "Now, now, we do so dislike violence," the overly friendly voice sighed. "I am afraid we will have to ask you to leave. Perhaps next time we can enjoy a nice game or a pleasant chat. So sorry."

Jeanne and I stepped to the side and just like that, the Hork-bajir and orange creature were being shoved out of the door by some invisible force. The Emperor was trying to shove past them, but nothing shoves through two dozen Hork-bajir. Once the door closed again, the ship was suddenly off the ground. I didn't feel a thing. A section of the wall shimmered as Erek appeared.

"Thanks for coming after me, guys. I don't know if I could have gotten out without hurting someone if you hadn't shown up. He had that Spaar blocking the door and I would have had to shove her down to get past and that might have done her harm. My programing, you see..." He trailed off, looking kind of embarrassed.

((We understand, Erek,)) Jeanne assured him. ((I think our business is nearly finished. We have one stop we need to make, though.))

"Wherever you need to go, Jeanne."

I knew where she was going with t his. ((Take us to the Ssri'Kai capital.))

**CHAPTER 42**

**Ronnie**

The plan was pretty simple. Suicide usually is. Put a gun to your head. Swallow some pills. Drive into a tree. Jump off a bridge. Board the ship and attack the bridge. All nice and simple. James, me, and some Ssri'Kai elites would hop on one of their boarding craft, smash into the ship, and fight our way to the bridge where we could hopefully disable it. Suicide, you see.

I had no idea what we'd encounter on the ship. Andalites? Kelbrid? Hork-bajir? Some fresh hell? No clue. But there was no use worrying about it until we got there. In the end, a dozen of us went. The two of us and ten Ssri' boarding craft was small, and we were kind of crammed into it. The front was a short, drill-like needle that would bore through the hull of the ship so we could board. Also at the front were some magnets that could adjust their polarity to attach us to the side of any metal craft. The back had a large door where a larger ship could dock with our own to pour more troops in. There wouldn't be any of those tonight. The inside was pretty cramped, but we both decided it'd be netter to be packed in with a bunch of Ssri'Kai if it meant there'd be more to help us.

A pedestal in the center of the ship with a small half-globe on it served as the steering wheel. We all gave the pilot some space. This time, the pilot was the one wearing the translating collar, though he didn't have much to say. She, actually, as had been explained to us earlier after the captain got the hang of our pronouns. We had apparently never seen a male Ssri'Kai, and they didn't look anything like the females. They had been unwilling to say more on the subject and we didn't press them. After all, I wouldn't be comfortable explaining the differences between men and women to aliens.

When we were in orbit, some sort of display lit up next to what I'm going to call the steering wheel. I don't know the details, but I saw a lot of dots that had to be enemy ships. James pointed to one of the larger dots. "That looks like the Dome ship," he said to the pilot.

The pilot nodded. "That is it. We are cloaked and should avoid the sensors of their fighters and patrols, though the sensors on the capital ships are more powerful and will probably detect us. Once we are within sensor range of the Dome ship, we will have to move quickly."

"How can you tell that's the Dome ship?" I asked James.

"I've picked up a few things during my time on the _Reliquary_," he answered. "I can understand the basics of one of these things." I just shrugged.

Honestly, most of the flight was boring. I didn't understand a blip of the sensor data, so I don't know if we had any close calls or not. I did feel a slight jolt when the acceleration kicked in. I guess we were close enough to the Dome ship that the pilot figured we'd be noticed. A schematic of the Dome ship appeared next to the map of blips.

James pointed to a section on the shaft. "This is where we'll need to go. If I remember correctly, we should be able to drill straight into the bridge from there. Or at least get pretty close."

The pilot wiggled her neck and pointed the ship towards the shaft. I could see the Dome ship on the visual screen now. I've heard Al say that the Dome ships these days are small compared to other capital ships. More efficient, as he puts it. They use less resources but carry the same punch. Maybe it's small, but to me it looked enormous. Sort of the way a hippo is small compared to an elephant or something. Like how China is small compared to Russia or a bus is small compared to a semi-truck. It might have been little for a ship of its class, but it was bigger than any vehicle on Earth.

Guns started firing at us. Very big guns firing bolts of greenish light. Nothing hit us head on – I had been informed that would kill us – but we did take some glancing blows. The shields absorbed most of it, but the ship still shook when it got hit and I think we lost some skin on the edges. We managed to avoid the worst of it, though, and soon we were too close for the weapons to actually target us.

We pulled up to the shaft and the pilot decelerated, pressing the front of the craft against the Dome ship. "Recalibrating magnets...locked. Activating drill." I was sure she was saying it for our benefit. The other Ssri'Kai probably already knew what was going on. Or else didn't care. It was time for us to do our part. There wasn't nearly enough space for us to ride morphed, but we needed to get started.

James turned to me. "Being a polar bear, you should probably go last. I'll take lion and we'll wait for you once we secure the immediate area." That would mean I'd probably miss most of the fighting. That was fine by me, really. I wasn't some sort of combat chuck or anything. I still wasn't happy about being bullied into this in the first place. Let the rest of them suffer for it if they wanted to.

There was a faint grinding noise as the drill tore through the eDome ship's side. James was halfway morphed when the pilot nodded. "We have an entrance. Atmospheric field activated so we won't depressurize upon exiting. Magnets have full hold. Whenever you're ready...uh...commander?" I guess she didn't know what to call James.

((Lead on, I'll catch up in a few seconds. I need more room to finish.)) The pilot nodded and then opened the door. Ssri'Kai rushed out into the hallway. A moment later, the ship was empty except for me and a mostly-morphed James.

"James...do you think this'll work?"

((I haven't the foggiest, Ronnie. But it's all we've got.)) He bounded out after the Ssri'Kai. I began to morph. Now, I'm new to this, so I morph slower than the others. It was about two minutes before I was ready to go out after them.

The hallway was empty. There weren't even any bodies, Andalite, Ssri'Kai, or otherwise. Weird. No signs of a fight, either. We had penetrated very close to the bridge, and the doors were opened. I wandered in to see James and the Ssri'Kai standing around. Some of the Ssri'Kai had taken up positions by the entrance, but there was no fighting going on . No sign that any fighting had happened. James and the pilot were standing by a computer. I wandered over to them.

((The ship's a ghost,)) James told me. ((No one's on board. It's all being remotely controlled. from the Pool ship, probably. The pilot's trying to hack a way into it, but she's no security wiz, and from what she's told me, it sounds like the Andalites are much better security-wise than the Ssri'Kai. They don't have the paranoia for it.))

((Who'd try to steal from Ssri'Kai?)) I wondered.

((Who'd try to steal from Andalites?)) James responded.

((Us, apparently. What do we do if she can't get the ship under her control?))

((I don't have a clue, man. ))

We waited for a few minutes. Then we heard a computerized voice. ((Auto-defenses activated.. Have a nice day.))

((_Now_ someone gets a sense of sarcasm!)) James demanded as we ran back to the boarding craft, dodging Shredder fire all the way.


	8. Chapters 43 to End

Good news! I got a laptop of mine fixed, so I can access things and stuff like one of you actual people. W00T.

* * *

**CHAPTER 43**

**David**

We've had a lot of arguments about why things ended up the way they did, and we'll probably argue about it until we're all dead. I'm sure Tobias and Rachel like to think that it was their little scheme that clinched things. Me, I'd feel like we wasted a lot of time if I assumed that Al and my efforts didn't matter. And of course, Al says that it wasn't anything we did; just the Andalites not being idiots. I might think he's right, but I'm never going to tell him that.

In the end, I think what it came down to was that the Andalites were a simple people at heart. They're logical, rational, and generally intelligent. Lirem never stood a chance. The whole reason that they were holding this election was that they were all sick of him. Even in the face of the stuff that was thrown at them, the Andalites weren't going to forget that the whole reason they were there was tho get rid of him. The old man didn't stand a shot.

Jaham never had a prayer, either. The biggest problem people had with Lirem was how he handled the First Yeerk War, and they laid the blame equally at Jaham's hooves. No one was pleased with the War Council – many thought it had gotten far too powerful anyway. The last thing they wanted, perhaps even before electing Lirem again, was Jaham calling all the shots.

Honestly, it didn't surprise me to learn that Alloran was even less popular than the previous two. The older Andalites, the ones who had been around for a while, just could not forget who he was and what he used to be. When they looked at him, they saw the face of the Abomination. It would be like a look-a-like of Hitler running for President in the 50s. No chance. And even those who knew the real Alloran remembered him as the Butcher of Hork-bajir. And of course, he was just too old for the younger Andalites to related to. In their minds, he was just another old guy like Lirem and Jaham. Maybe a little cooler, but still an old guy.

Caysath won virtually uncontested. I know it surprised some people – I was sure the Earth pundits would be shocked – but it didn't make me blink. I think the right Andalite got the job. At least Caysath listened to advice. That alone made him a cut above all the others in my eyes. That all by itself might be all that was needed to win us this war. He was the leader. He didn't have to be brilliant – really, he didn't even have to be competent. I'm used to leaders like Jake or Tobias, brilliant leaders who can take the whole world on their shoulders and ask for more. But as long as the person calling the shots listened to people who knew what they were talking about, things would go right.

Caysath called us over to his Scoop after the results were announced. I doubted it was just to thank us, he could have done that via hologram. Something was up, so as always,we were on high alert. Then again, I'm constantly on high alert.

The new Andalite leader was waiting for us in his Scoop when we got there. Surprisingly, Alloran was there, too. Tobias raised an eyebrow at me when he saw that. Expecting me to figure it out. ((No clue,)) I told him. Not entirely true. I had suspicions, but I didn't want to get Tobias's hopes up. Not yet.

Caysath greeted us all in turn, then turned his attention to Tobias. ((My friend, I first want to thank you for your support. Without you, I do not know how things would have ended today.))

Tobias shrugged. "I do what I have to do. What's up, Caysath? You could have thanked me over a hologram."

((I wanted you to be the first to know. As I am sure you guessed, Jaham is no longer going to be the leader of the War Council. Hopefully, he will resign with dignity, but if not...at least now I have the power to do something about such childishness. You are already familiar with the Andalite who will be replacing him.)) He turned all four eyes to Alloran.

((Good choice,)) I admitted to Tobias. ((He's got real ability, and Caysath's good a good head on his shoulders. I think that'll work out great.))

Rachel nodded. "Good call, Caysath. That's probably who we would have suggested. What do you think will happen to Lirem?"

((A wise Andalite would retire to his Scoop and keep himself out of the public view . If he is intelligent, we will not hear from him until the announcement of his death,)) Alloran answered. Then he sighed. ((We will probably be hearing from him by the end of the week.))

((Lirem is irrelevant,)) Caysath added. ((And Alloran is not the only reason I called you here. I intend to right as many of Lirem's wrongs as I can find and in that vein, it came to my attention that he stopped paying you a long time ago. While we use no currency among ourselves, something with which to trade with other races is always helpful, and our War-Princes are permitted to specify how they intend to be paid.))

"Yeah, the lady at...I guess it's the accounting department...went over that with me when I got promoted," Tobias answered. "Lirem cut me off because I wouldn't lead his armies for him."

((As I am well aware. So one of my first acts will be to reinstate your stipend, as well as give you all that you are owed. That is only the start of it, though.))

Now things were getting interesting. "Go on," Rachel prompted.

((As you are no doubt aware, Earth will soon begin sending soldiers off to fight against the Kelbrid, Pythagi, and Yeerks. They wish to coordinate with us on this, a wise decision. I can think of no better liaison than you.))

"Me?" Tobias asked.

"Who better?" Rachel answered before Caysath could. "I can't think of a better person to coordinate the efforts of two races than someone who's a member of both. Plus, you'll look good in a uniform. We'll have to cut your hair again, though..."

Alloran continued. I guess this was his job now. ((Captain Gonrod – an acquaintance of yours, I understand – will be sent to command and supervise the diplomatic fleet orbiting Earth. As you know, there are four Dome ships in orbit above the planet, none of which are armed. They and the warriors within them will be under your command, though I admit they are understaffed.))

I saw Rachel mouth the words. Four Dome ships. Not to mention some Moonrakers, transports, and at least a hundred Andalites. All at our fingertips. It was like Christmas for her. For the rest of us too, I think.

The gifts weren't done. ((From now on, whenever military coordination is necessary, it will be done through you. In effect, you will be responsible for the defense of Earth. As that does not currently appear to be a target for the Yeerks, you should not need to do much more than paperwork, but you do have the authorization of the War Council and Electorate to do anything necessary to see to the defense of the planet. While you might still be limited by your own Earth governments, I believe you can handle anything that might come up.))

Oh, if they only knew. A serious inflow of cash, soldiers, weapons, ships...I was shaking.

((I understand you wished to remain stationed on Earth due to the impending birth of your child,)) Caysath continued after Alloran finished. ((I understand that and I think this is a way for us to still make use of your abilities and give you what you want as well. Expect to be contacted by Alloran and other commanders for advice, I will certainly recommend it to them. There is only one more thing I think we have left to do.))

Alloran picked up again. This time, he turned to Rachel, ignoring Tobias entirely. ((Rachel...Caysath and I have been speaking, and we both agree that your own efforts have been ignored far too long. Everyone knows of your bravery during the invasion of Earth, and Caysath and I can attest to the aid you provided during the battle for Hork-bajir. Tobias was promoted to War-Prince after that battle. It is a grievous error to ignore your contributions. In light of that, we offer you the chance to be promoted to the rank of Prince, if you so choose. You would, naturally, be under Tobias's command.))

At roughly the same time, everyone voiced more or less the same thought. No one commanded Rachel, especially not her husband.

((We would offer this opportunity to the other Animorphs as well, but as you no doubt are aware, Jake and Aximili already possess such rank, and we doubt Marco and Cassie would be interested, though as a War-Prince, Tobias is qualified to raise a Prince if he so chooses.))

"I'd be honored," Rachel agreed.

((Excellent. We will perform the ceremony tomorrow. Caysath himself will preside, his first official act as the head of the Electorate.))

I was having some mixed feelings. Alloran was doing most of the talking here. Was that because it was his job, or was Caysath letting Alloran push him around? Maybe only time would tell. I hoped it wouldn't take too long to find out. I hoped we didn't make some mistake. Caysath seemed intelligent, thoughtful, and very different from the average Andalite. I wanted him to succeed. I really, really did.

**CHAPTER 44**

**Jeanne**

The Ssri'Kai capital building was burrowed inside of a massive crystal in the main canyon. There were no signs of guards. Perhaps the Ssri'Kai didn't think there was any need of them. Ordinarily, we could not have entered without an invitation. Technically, our very presence on this planet was a severe violation of their customs and, if it was discovered, they could begin a war against us that Earth had no hope of winning. And we were walking right into their front door.

Not as ourselves,of course, or as morphs. Erek projected a hologram of three Ssri'Kai and we hid inside. No one questioned us. Erek led us through the twisting, maze-like hallways of the crystal structure, taking long detours to avoid the places where we would have had to walk up the walls. All in all, it took us nearly an hour to reach the chamber we wanted.

"I sent a message through the Yeerk systems to the Ssri'Kai high command telling them that we needed to meet with them urgently. There should be a representative there, at the very least," Erek informed us. Remotely hacking the Yeerk systems while he was on the Blade ship or in the Pemalite ship would not have been a problem for Erek. Their computers might as well have been McDonald's wi-fi.

The door appeared to be some sort of crystal fan that grew out of the floor. It was stretched over the doorway but as we approached, it drew in on itself until it was only a thin vertical beam in the middle of the doorway, which itself retracted into the ground. Inside was where the Ssri'Kai high command apparently met with the Yeerks.

The first Ssri'Kai I noticed was seated, predictably, in the center of a group of five. Unlike the others, it was wearing shoulder-plates made of the same crystals that surrounded us. They were veined with gold the same color as the pencil-thin lines of color that decorated its body. "The _Ssri'Sho_. Literal translation would be Voice of Ssri. You might call her the Ssri'Kai Queen," Erek whispered. "She represents the will of the Ssri'Kai as a whole."

The Ssri'Kai to the left of the _Ssri'Sho_ was decorated with violet lines. Erek introduced it as the _Van'Sho_, the Voice of War, who represented the Ssri'Kai military. On the right of the queen was the _Hal'Sho_, Voice of Law, the representative of the judicial system. Next to the Voice of War was the _Coi'Sho_, which most closely translated to Voice of Economy or money. Sort of a financial adviser. Next to the Voice of Law was the _Kai'Sho_, the Voice of the People. That one represented the opinions of the average Ssri'Kai, giving them a way in an otherwise more or less autocratic government. One other thing Erek noted in his brief explanation. All of the leaders were female, as far as the Yeerks could tell.

"Let me do the talking," he whispered after introducing them. I cannot make much of alien expressions, but I believe the queen and the others were puzzled by the entrance of three Ssri'Kai when they were expecting Yeerks. Erek dispelled that notion quickly. Before I had a chance to urge him not to, he dropped the hologram. "Greetings, At-Law, great Queen of Ssri. My name is... You can call me Erek."

Before I could blink, each of the Ssri'Kai before us was leveling one of their spike-like weapons at us. "What are you?" the queen demanded. I was surprised to hear a Ssri'Kai speaking English. I think it had something to do with a collar she was wearing around her neck.

"I am a Chee, great Queen. A creation of the Pemalites."

That caused a quiet murmur among the Ssri'Kai. While I could not understand a word of it, I could guess from the general tone that they knew something of the Pemalites. Enough to know that a Chee dropping in on them was not an every day occurrence. Finally, At-Law spoke.

"We know of the Pemalites. We are not so ignorant as to forget our own origins. You say you were also created by the Pemalites, and you do share a similar image. That makes you kin, of a sort, and for that we have not yet killed you. But to enter Ssri uninvited is death, even for other Ssri'Kai. Yet here you stand. Why?" She was not exactly short with Erek, but she was demanding, commanding. She was used to having her questions answered and would not accept dissemblance.

"I was invited, _Ssri'Sho_. I came here with the Yeerks, as one of them. I have hid as one of them for many years now. The Yeerks...you know they are parasites. They conquer worlds, enslave their inhabitants, and strip the planet of all resources not needed to sustain the population. They are murderers without pity, slavers without mercy, and tyrants without purpose."

"All this we know, Erek the Chee," the queen answered. She sounded resigned.. "It is disgusting-"

"Under Ssri'Kai law," the _Hal'Sho_, the Voice of Law, interrupted, "the Yeerks have the right to live as they wish and govern as they wish so long as it does not directly conflict with established Ssri'Kai policies and is done in their own territory. We have no legal right to stop them."

"A point of which I am well aware, _Hal'Sho_," Erek responded. "I memorized your laws on my journey here. I know it is for that reason that you did not send the Yeerks on their way as soon as you learned what they are. I know that they are repellent to you. You were designed to despise just such creatures. That is not why I am here."

"Then why _are_ you here?" the Voice of War demanded.

"Because the Yeerks are here to enslave you, now. The five of you, in order to force you to agree to their alliance. And," Erek continued as the Voice of War began to interrupt him, "that is not their only plan. They plan to attack Grunn'Nesh and frame the Andalites for it so that you will ally with them and fight their enemies. The Emperor knows that he cannot keep the attack a secret forever. But once the alliance is joined, he also knows that your own laws would forbid you from breaking it until his enemies are defeated. By then, he would have so much power that even the Ssri'Kai could not avenge themselves."

"Have you any proof of these claims?" the Voice of Law asked. "There must always be proof."

"I have proof, but I have more to say. The Yeerks have other allies."

"Yes, the Pythagi. We have heard of them. For my part, I say they sound like profitable sorts, perhaps worth seeking out on our own." That, of course, came from the Voice of Money.

"Not just the Pythagi," Erek answered. He took a deep breath, almost afraid to continue. "The Kelbrid fight for them."

That was met with stoney silence from four of the five. For the first time, the Voice of the People spoke up. And she was quite vocal. "No! No matter what anyone else may think, the people will NEVER fight alongside the Kelbrid. Never will any Ssri'Kai stand beside one of those beasts. They are devourers of worlds, murderers of uncountable beings and planets. We have confirmation of two entire galaxies completely depopulated by them."

"Two galaxies? That's impossible!" Melissa blurted out. I guess the Ssri'Kai assumed we were Chee as well.

"We know of the Chee. We know that you cannot understand war," the Voice of War answered. "The Kelbrid do. They have been destroying worlds for a very long time. They are one of the oldest races in the galaxy, and they have been destroying ever since. Once unleashed, they can and do consume everything. Every planet visited was devoid of even trees and rocks, some of them were even devoured down to the bedrock. No signs of life detected anywhere. They leave nothing, no matter how long it takes. And it does not take nearly long enough. We stopped them, when they attacked this galaxy. If the Yeerks have unleashed them again..."

"They have, and we can prove it," I answered. "They are attacking Grunn'Nesh even as we speak."

"We will dispatch a fleet as soon as we see your evidence. It can be there in hours," the Queen answered.

Erek nodded. "I have recordings of many of the Emperor's dealings. Meetings with the Kelbrid, discussions of his plans, everything. I can prove it all."

"Then there is little time to waste," the queen answered. "Let us prepare."

**CHAPTER 45**

**James**

We were more screwed then I remember being in a long, long time. We couldn't take the Andalite ship, we couldn't call for help, and that was about it as far as our options went. No choice but to meet them in battle and...and do what? What kind of chance was there?

According to the captain, Kelbrid weren't very good at fighting a battle on their own. They just descended into mindless slaughter. So if we could kill their leaders, maybe we'd have a shot. Maybe. It would still leave us fighting who knows how many blood-crazed Kelbrid. Even with several hundred Ssri'Kai at my back, that wouldn't be fun.

But that was all we had. I would be with a strike force of Ssri'Kai who would attack the pool ship and hopefully kill many Kelbrid commanders. Others would be attacking other command posts. That would tie up the majority of the Ssri'Kai, leaving what Grunn we could gather to try to somehow hold off the Kelbrid...somehow. Ronnie elected to be with them. I didn't blame him. In a way, we brought this on them, and now no matter what happened, a lot of Grunn were going to die. Someone should be with them.

There were fifty of us, this time. A lot more Ssri'Kai than I ever expected to see in one place, much less looking at me like I had some idea what I was doing. I wasn't in charge, thankfully, but the commanding officer seemed to think I was. As she put it, I had more experience against Yeerks than anyone else there. That wasn't going to help us out at all.

We had something of a plan – a bad one. I remembered a story the other Animorphs told me about back when I re-joined the fight. Basically, Jake blew up a fuel line in a Pool ship and, as a result, blew the whole thing to pieces. Normally, that wasn't doable, but that one was still under construction – the safeguards hadn't been put in place. We were going to attempt something similar. One team would infiltrate the control room and toss those safeguards out the window. That would be my team. The other would go to the engines and try to get them to blow.

All in all, I guess it wasn't a horrible plan, but I can't help but think about what happened to the last person who tried it.

We were waiting in a Ssri'Kai transport ship. It was light, fast, and basically an aluminum can with rockets that would crumple up at the first shot from one of the Pool ship's Dracon beams. Still, it was fast and that was what we needed. We needed a diversion first, though. So we had to wait for the battle to start. I felt like vomiting the whole time.

It began with the Pool ship making the predictable dramatic entrance. Red lightning bombarded out position from above the clouds. Our shields kept it from damaging us, but it was still intimidating. Next, a few other colors joined in as the other ships got in on the act. Finally, the Pool ship, Dome ship, and a Blade ship took up positions equidistant from us, pinning us in an unpleasant little triangle. I guess the other Blade ship and that starburst looking thing were staying in orbit, just in case.

Lasers flashed in the sky as fighter ships engaged each other. I didn't see the red ship out there – I guess Naronn was still commanding the battle. Hopefully from the Pool ship. The ships fought for a few minutes, the Grunn and Ssri'Kai quickly being forced back into defensive positions. That was when the ground troops got in on it. Kelbrid poured out of the Pool and Blade ships. The Dome ship remained silent, but it did bombard our position with some very powerful Shredder cannons.

I've seem some scary things, and a Kelbrid charge is definitely one of them. They came like a tidal wave, as impossible to ignore as it was to stop. A wave of Kelbrid a quarter mile long loped straight for the front ranks of Grunn. Ssri'Kai were forming a second rank, with mixed reserve units behind them. The Grunn and Ssri'Kai opened fire at the mass of Kelbrid, but it didn't seem to do any good. Some died, I'm sure, but no one noticed.

The Kelbrid literally rolled over the Grunn. They made straight for the Ssri'Kai, completely ignoring the Grunn. The result was that the central ranks of the Grunn were trampled while the Kelbrid left significant forces on their right and left. That meant nothing to them. A few moments later, the Kelbrid and Ssri'Kai were fighting one another, the Ssri'Kai desperately trying to hold them back while the reserves and our few available ships rained laser fire down on them.

Then it was time for us to take off. Our ship sped towards the Pool ship, keeping just above the heads of the warriors below. No one even stopped to shoot at us until we were almost on top of the Pool ship. And on top is where we wanted to go. Both teams needed to get inside, and if we tried to enter at two different points, it was likely the transport would be shot down before the second team reached its goal. So we were all going in together.

A hatch opened in the floor of the transport and we hopped out, onto the top of the Pool ship. One of the engineers blew a hole big enough for two Kelbrid right through into the Dropshaft. I was in my lion suit now, ready to go. My team went first, dropping down only a few feet and then exploding into a hallway. When I landed, it was already a scene of violence. A foreguard of Ssri'Kai was keeping a small mass of Kelbrid at bay while a secondary group shot at them. I ran forward and joined in the melee fight.

I swatted a Kelbrid in the side of the head with one paw and raked the claws of my other across its whiskers. It stumbled, dazed and blind for a moment. I lunged and hit it with all my weight, knocking it down. A quick bite to the throat ended that one. I turned to fight another and barely noticed that already, there was a long gash in my side, the Kelbrid poison killing the nerves so I didn't even know I was hurt. No choice but to keep fighting. I ran at a second Kelbrid, keeping low to the ground. Almost underneath it, I reared my head back and scraped my teeth across its throat. Burning blood splahsed over my face, but I wasn't blind or dead, so I kept moving.

Slowly, we fought our way towards the control room. More Kelbrid appeared on our rear, but we were ready. Warriors in the center kept a steady stream of fire at both groups of Kelbrid and slowly and surely, we pushed our way onwards. The enemies in front of us grew less as those behind us grew more. By the time we finally reached the control room, there was no one left there to stop us.

I demorphed as soon as we entered the control room, sealing the Kelbrid out behind us. I was wounded in more places than I could count. Gashes from stingers that I never felt, broken ribs and one shattered leg from Kelbrid fists and body-blows, and more acid burns than I knew numbers for. My skull was almost visible in several places. I had managed to take down seven Kelbrid in the fighting. More than I've ever killed, but then again, I've never had thirty Ssri'Kai to help. At least four of the ones I killed were already wounded.

The Ssri'Kai leader nodded at me. "You fight well, James. Very well."

I looked at the wounded and dead Ssri'Kai. As a rule, they left no bodies behind, so I could see that we had eleven dead and another dozen wounded. They couldn't just morph their injuries away. If I couldn't have done that, I'd have died for sure. "I'm just lucky. Let's do this thing."

This was a job for the engineers, so I went over with the warriors who weren't tended to the wounded and disintegrating the bodies of the dead. They were plotting an escape route. As soon as we got confirmation from Team 2, we were out of here. The best way seemed to be to take the most direct route. Out through the wall and run right down the side of the ship. Vertical surfaces were no problem for Ssri'Kai, and I could always grow wings.

It took me a few minutes before I realized that the steady pounding I was hearing wasn't my heart. It was Kelbrid throwing themselves against the door. Sooner or later, someone would come along with a Dracom beam and start blowing holes through it. We hoped to be gone by then. An engineer already had a charge on the wall, ready to blow. We waited, those who were able taking up positions in front of the door in case the Kelbrid broke through. I would have held my breath if I wasn't afraid of passing out and being trampled by the Ssri'Kai and/or Kelbrid.

Finally, the commander said something in the ear-splitting Ssri'Kai language. Faintly, I heard a response coming from the collar around her neck. The commander responded and the engineer blew the charge. Time to go. I was already morphing. Thanks to that, I was the last one out. The commander hesitated, but then decided not to wait for me. I didn't want her to anyway. After all, I didn't have to run down the side of the ship. They had farther to go than I did.

A few moments after the Ssri'Kai left, the Kelbrid broke through the door, with some help from a Taxxon with a Dracom beam. The Taxxon flew to the main computer, little claws scrabbling over keys and interfaces like one of those chefs at a Japanese steak house with the fancy knife tricks. I couldn't let it reassert the safeguards. One of the Kelbrid looked at me and that was when the idea struck. I flew straight at the Kelbrid. And being a Kelbrid, it came right for me.

I twisted and scraped a claw across its scalp. That was all I needed. I wheeled about and flew out through the hole in the wall, turning again to watch. I saw the Taxxon-Controller twitching, Yeerk warring with host. As always, the host won and against every ounce of reason and better judgment, the Taxxon made a beeline for the wounded Kelbrid. That ended how you would expect it to.

I circled higher, trying to put some distance between myself and the explosion. I counted. A minute passed. And then everything turned white. My ears were ringing. I didn't know up from down. Slowly, my vision cleared and my hearing came back. When I came to my senses I found myself floating on the most intense thermal I've ever experienced. There Pool ship was a smoking wreck on the ground below me. Part of me thought that maybe we could win this.

Then I looked at the rest of the battle.

**CHAPTER 46**

**Al**

Rachel was given the rank of Prince. Not Princess – she was very insistent on that point. Prince Rachel would take a little getting used to, but I would adapt. A day later, Tobias had me promoted to the rank of Warrior in a private ceremony. Apparently, he would have done so long ago, but he did not realize he actually had the authority to do it.

We contacted Prince Jake and the others to inform them of our news. We were lucky enough to catch all three of them together. Marco and Prince Aximili almost looked like they were going to cry tears of joy when they learned that we had several hundred Andalite warriors available for emergencies. They had some good news of their own.

"Training is going well," Prince Jake assured us. "Marco and I have taught them everything we can about battles and such – there isn't a whole lot they didn't know. We just had to provide a few details they didn't think of. And drill it into their heads that hosts are innocent victims, so mass casualties on either side are unacceptable. I'm...not sure the Russians got it."

"They're getting on well enough," Marco agreed. "Things get a little tense, and generally the Americans and Russians keep to their own, but they don't fight with each other and both listen to what Tri-I and we tell them to do. I think the Russians might be a little better at that."

((Yes, they do seem to have vast experience obeying orders they do not understand,)) Ax agreed. ((I believe things will go well, when the invasion force strikes.))

"Ax has been teaching them about ship-to-ship fighting. He insists he isn't some epic pilot or anything, but he seems good enough to me," Prince Jake added. "The Tri-I guys seem to have the hang of that. All in all, it looks like our part will be finished here in a few days."

((Any word from Sara and the others?)) David asked.

"All seems quiet," Prince Jake began.

"And that worries me," Marco added. "The Yeerks have to have noticed by now that we're taking some personal days. They should be moving."

"The less trouble those girls get into, the better," Tobias answered. "I'm thinking we might want to keep them on when we get back."

Prince Jake shrugged. "What Kristina does is up to her, but I don't think you'll get past Aunt Naomi if you want Jordan and Sara. Just because you're her son-in-law doesn't mean she has to admit it."

Rachel laughed at that, but there was something about her expression. She almost looked like she was in pain... I looked closer. Her breathing was a little irregular, and she had her fists tightly clenched at her side. ((Are you alright?)) I asked her.

She gave a slight shake of her head but said and did nothing.

"It looks like we'll be going home in a few, too," Prince Tobias continued. "I just want to keep an eye on Caysath for a few days and make sure he isn't letting Alloran have too much power too fast or too easily." He nodded to David, giving him what credit there was for that idea.

A few more pleasantries followed before we cut the communication. David and I decided to retire to my mother's Scoop for the day. We had not been sleeping well lately and needed to catch up on some rest. It was during the walk that David said something that shocked me.

((Al, I've been thinking... I don't know how much longer I can do this.))

((Do what?)) I asked, pretending not to understand. Surely I had misheard him.

((This. All of it. I...I'm getting old, Al. Very old, for a rat. If I stay in this body, I don't know how much longer I have. Less than a year, I know that. Maybe just a couple of months.))

((David, what are you saying...?))

((You know what I'm saying, Al. Soon – maybe very soon – I'm going to have to become human. I don't have much choice.))

I wanted to argue with him, but there was no argument I could make. I know that not even Prince Tobias would be so ruthless as to ask him to continue fighting under the circumstances. I certainly could not. ((What are you going to do?)) I asked finally.

((I...There's something I haven't told anyone else yet, Al. It didn't feel like the time, but you should all know soon. The Global Operations Director of Tri-I, John Montresor...Al, do you know what my last name is?))

((Come to think of it, I do not know if anyone ever told me,)) I admitted. Omitting our surnames was simply an Animorph habit.

((My name is David Montresor. John Montresor is my father.))

I stopped walking. ((David...the chances of that are...))

((Better than you might think. He used to be in the...covert intelligence...business. He'd have connections, skills, experience. And motivation. After all...the Yeerks took his son. I don't know how it happened, Al, but I recognized him the moment I saw him. When I'm human again...I want to go home.))

I had no idea what to say. ((David, how will you explain...everything.))

((I don't know, Al. But...It's like I'm really getting a second chance. I'll be human again. Fourteen again. With my father and mother. I checked some things while we were here with fancy Andalite computers, and there's nothing suggesting that she died, and there are some references to the director of Tri-I being married. My family can be together again, Al...I can finally go home.))

((I understand, David. I will not argue against any of it. I just hope →

I cut off as Prince Tobias flew overhead in his hawk morph. ((Guys, get morphed RIGHT NOW!))

Prince Tobias rarely shouts, if ever. We immediately began doing as he said. ((What's the problem?)) David asked. ((Is someone trying to assassinate Caysath or something?))

(( We need to find the Andalites James was staying with immediately.))

((Wha - why?)) David asked.

((One was a doctor of some kind, studying humans. Or something like that. And right now, we need that.))

((Why is that?)) I asked. I believed I already knew the answer.

((Because Rachel's about to have the baby.))

**CHAPTER 47**

**Melissa**

Once they were convinced that we weren't some sort of deception, the Ssri'Kai moved fast. They didn't like enemies on their doorstep, and they really couldn't take the thought of Kelbrid nearby. They gathered quickly and were ready to jump into orbit within a matter of hours. The first thing they did was arrest any and all Yeerks they could find. Naturally, the Emperor had taken that Blade ship and fled as soon as we escaped, and many Yeerks made it out, but we still got a couple dozen.

Next, we were in space, performing a quick sweep to make sure there weren't any other Yeerk ships hiding nearby. The Voice of War was in charge of the whole thing, which was only natural. We were riding on her ship. Everyone was tense and worried. Maybe there wasn't anything to worry about, though. Maybe James and Ronnie had found some way to stop the attack. I don't know how, but maybe...

The planet, Grunn'Nesh, was very close to Ssri, so we got there pretty quickly. When we arrived, our fears were confirmed. A Blade ship and a giant ship I didn't recognize, one with a lot of spears or something jutting out of it, were waiting for us. We weren't too worried, though. Ssri was defended by six capital ships at all times, and we brought all of them for this.

Beams of blinding light shot from the Ssri'Kai ships, bright, deadly lasers that cut straight through anything. Three concentrated on the Blade ship and made short work of it. The starburst ship stood up to the first barrage, some sort of shield system absorbing the first attacks. It returned fire with weapons I didn't recognize. Our ship was rocked by some sort of gravity wave, hit with energy beams I didn't recognize, and assaulted in ways only the engineers understood. But we held.

All six capital ships opened fire on the starburst next. Their shields went down and we tore some nice, big holes through their hull. One of the spires was lanced clean off. That was when they decided to get out of there. It began accelerating, far faster than something that size should have been able to go. It was almost like a mace, a giant, spiked, deadly ball. It almost hit us as it passed, and some of the lasers the other ships were firing on it glanced off of our shields.

The ship disappeared. "Too bad," Jeanne muttered. "I wish I knew who was responsible for that one."

Then it was down to the planet. We reached the battle quickly and didn't like what we saw. Clearly, the defenders were in a very bad position. There was a Blade ship in the air over the fight, raining Dracon beams down at Ssri'Kai and Grunn. There was, even more shockingly, an Andalite Dome ship trading shots with a Ssri'Kai capital s hip. On the ground, more Kelbrid than I ever wanted to see were among Grunn and Ssri'Kai. They were completely surrounded, but that didn't seem to bother them. It was just a vortex, a black hole that swallowed the Ssri'Kai and Grunn that approached it.

There was a smoking wreck that I think used to be the Pool ship. At least that was one for our side. But they had no chance of winning. Some of the Kelbrid had broken free of the circle and were coming back around for another attack. Two of our ships opened fire on those Kelbrid while the other four ripped into that Blade ship. Less than a minute later, the ship exploded, debris showering the soldiers below.

We turned to the Dome ship next. I guess the captain realized something was wrong because they started running for orbit. Three of our ships gave chase while we turned the rest to the battle. It was good that the Kelbrid were all gathered together; it made things a lot easier.

Maybe Kelbrid are stupid, maybe they're just insane, but none of them started running when we attacked. We showered them with deadly light, killing them by the score, and they didn't try to flee. They fought on harder, trying to drag as many Ssri'Kai and Grunn down with them as possible. It didn't last long, though. Nothing can stand up to a concentrated barrage from four Ssri'Kai capital ships. In less than five minutes, the battle was over, the Kelbrid no more.

We landed near the main command post., among a joyful gaggle of Ssri'Ka and Grunn. Jeanne and I left the Ssri'Kai to talk about what happened among themselves. There were two in particular we were looking for. The first one, we found easily. James was surrounded by a small group of Ssri'Kai. It looked like they were congratulating him. He had some sort of crystal in his hand, and one of those translation collars in the other. He jogged over to us when he saw us.

"Things went well on Ssri,I take it?" he asked.

"You might say that," Jeanne answered. "The Ssri'Kai aren't willing to commit to any sort of alliance with us yet, but with Kelbrid involved...they really hate Kelbrid. I believe we will be able to count on their support in the near future."

"What happened with you?" I asked, nodding at the crystal. The Ssri'Kai seemed to care about those things.

"Oh, this? They thought I deserved some sort of reward."

"For what?" I asked.

He nodded in the direction of the destroyed Pool ship. "We had a little bonfire. They enjoyed it. Give me way too much credit for it, though."

"Where's Ronnie?" Jeanne asked.

James's face fell. "I'm not sure. He...he was on the ground with the Ssri'Kai and Grunn."

"He's fine," said a voice from behind us. Ronnie was frowning, but he does that a lot, I noticed. He looked like he was about ready to fall over. "I spent far too much of that going in and out of consciousness. I hate those stingers. I want to know when I'm hit instead of passing out. Some Ssri'Kai kept waking me up, though. Demorph, remorph, and I'm good to go again."

"How many times did you have morph?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Five or six, I think."

"And you can still walk?" Jeanne asked.

"He's got more stamina than anyone I've seen before," James admitted. "I only did three morphs and I feel like I could sleep for the next three days."

"You can sleep on the ship," Jeanne offered. "The Ssri'Kai currently believe that Melissa and I are Chee."

"Kind of a long story," I added.

"We should leave before they discover the truth. It might be...uncomfortable," Jeanne finished.

"You have the ship?" James asked.

I nodded. "It's in the hangar of the capital ship we came in on. They won't mind if we slip away. Erek's waiting for us there."

As we left the battlefield, I shivered. The other Animorphs always told me that our version of war was horrible, and it definitely was. The constant fear, the paranoia, the nightmares...it wasn't a whole lot of fun. But when I looked at the battlefield...all the Ssri'Kai and Grunn lying dead for...for what? So that the Kelbrid couldn't have this chunk of ground? I understood about strategy and all that, but for me, what it came down to was that a whole lot of good people were dead for very little reason.

This was happening all over the galaxy. Andalites, Anati, Hork-bajir, all getting themselves killed in massive numbers. Soon, humans would join them; were looking forward to joining them. And the only way to stop it was with more of it. The Kelbrid would never stop. The Yeerks wouldn't, either. I doubted the Pythagi would unless the first two just gave up.

I sighed. No choice, was there? We had to keep fighting our own war. Maybe if we won on Earth, Azmaveth would send the Kelbrid home. Then there'd be a chance. No choice but to press on.

**CHAPTER 48**

**Ronnie**

I slept during the first half of the ride home. I was more exhausted than I'd ever been. The others seemed impressed I could do so much morphing in such a short amount of time. I'd rather sleep than accept compliments.

I was in a dark mood. We all were. No one could be happy after seeing that slaughter. James and I couldn't even be happy about being rescued. We just felt tired. Numb. Sick. And it felt like nothing could change that, nothing could take away those memories. At the time, it was really hard to remember why I chose my new path. Really, really hard to argue against what Cassie had always told me about war and fighting.

But that always made me remember Cassie. And what that Yeerk did to her. If I had to watch a thousand worlds die, I'd make him pay for it. There was nothing else left to me. I knew she didn't want me to do it. I knew she'd want me to give it up and move on. Cassie never believed in revenge.

There's an old saying about revenge. I don't know who said it – I think some Chinese guy, so you could probably ask Tobias. "If you set out on a journey of revenge, first dig two graves." I guess one is for the person you're going to kill. The other is for you. That was fine by me. I'd go to my own grave gladly. At least Cassie would be there with me. I just had to drag this one Yeerk down with me.

Erek contracted Tobias about halfway through the journey. None of us felt like talking, so Erek informed us of the situation. Caysath elected, Alloran the new head of the War Council, and Tobias the new defender of Earth. That was good, I guessed. At least he wouldn't have the Electorate breathing down his neck all the time. None of us felt like caring at the moment.

We didn't bother with Andalite customs or anything like that. Not even they could detect our ship if we felt like hiding. We put down next to the Scoop they were staying in – much to Al's mom's shock and joy. I guess she was excited about a new piece of alien technology. That apple stayed pretty close to both trees.

We congratulated each other as though we really felt it. In a distant way, I think we did. I was glad Rachel and Al got promoted to ranks I felt they deserved a long time ago. They were glad our mission went well. They called it a success, anyway. I didn't know what to think about it. Yeah, the Yeerks and Ssri'Kai were enemies now. All it took as a few thousand good sentients murdered.

"We've got a little surprise for all of you," Tobias said, after all of our congratulations were finished. "We wanted to mention this earlier, but..."

Rachel went into the back of the Scoop. She returned with a small bundle in her arms. I almost fell over when I realized it was a baby. Maybe a day or so old. I had no doubt who the parents were. "Everybody...meet Gideon."

For the next few hours, we all just sat around holding the baby, everyone taking a turn. Even Erek got a chance, and he seemed very comfortable with it. When I held that child in my arms, it was like all the dark thoughts I was having since Grunn'Nesh all just melted away. It was almost like magic or something. I just couldn't be upset while holding that child. I couldn't.

I was about to pass Gideon to Melissa when suddenly, there was something between us. Wrinkled, purple, kind of like Barney if he was designed by Tim Burton. We just called him the Drode. I snatched the child back before that...thing...could touch him. Cassie always said the Drode and his master, Crayak, were a level of evil that the Yeerks couldn't even understand.

"Awww!" the Drode whined. "But It was my turn!"

"Drode," Tobias answered, "let me make this very clear. You never touch my son. Ever."

"If you do," Rachel added, "I'm going to make you wish...well, you're the twisted one here. Maybe I'll make you supply me with ideas."

"You make me shudder," the Drode smiled. "And tingle. Congatulations! So, does the little beast have a Godfather yet? I'm available, you know."

"Not a chance," Rachel responded.

"Ah, but Rach! You owe me! Who do you think kept the Yeerks from doing anything while you were away? That cost me, you know. Us, I should say. After all, if I go down I'm taking you all with me."

"What do you want?" I demanded of the thing. I was finally starting to feel good again.

"What, me? I can't just pop in to say hello?"

"You could. You don't. We've had this talk before," Tobias responded. "What do you want?"

"Just to congratulate you all! It was a nice bit of work. Davo and Ally did a great job, don't you think? Making enemies of Andalites like Lirem and Jaham. I'm sure that won't come back to haunt you all. Did you tell them all your secret yet, Davo? How long do you think you can keep it hidden? I give it a month. What about you, Ally? Are you going to share with the group? What if you were ordered to?"

The Drode turned to Jeanne and Melissa. "A great job the two of you did, too. Forcing Erek into helping the Ssri'Kai murder thousands of Kelbrid and who knows how many innocent hosts on the ships they blew up. That'll eat away at him for the rest of his life. How long will that be? Two thousand years? Three thousand? Forever? He'll never forget what happened. Bravo."

He looked at us next and I felt my stomach turn to ice. I knew what was to come. "And you two. Ronnie-boy and James. Did you like it, James? You got to play the big hero and save everyone. Right? Or did you just cause more death. We know what you'd like to think. And we know what the truth is. And you, Ronnie. Did it feel good? Did you like it, the feel of your claws in those Kelbrid? The smell of death? The taste of blood...there's nothing quite like it, is there? You've got real potential, kid. I'm going to watch you closely. Maybe Cassie had better taste in men than I thought."

"Don't you ever say her name!" I shouted at the...the thing.

"Oh Ronnie. You and I have a lot in common, you know. I could teach you a lot about yourself. Deep down inside...well, we're really all the same, aren't we? Now that all that other...stuff...has been taken from you, you know who you really are. You're no better than I am, are you?"

I would have hit him. I wanted to. But my arms were busy holding Gideon. I focused on the child. He didn't seem bothered by the Drode's sudden appearance. He was snuggled happily in my arms, trying to sleep.

"You're wrong," I answered in a much gentler voice. I kept my eyes focused on the baby. "What you fight for – if actually fight at all – you'd crush anything to get it. But me...I fight to stop people like you. No matter what I was fighting for, there are some things I'd never do. Some people I would never hurt. Some things I'd give everything to protect. That's the difference between us. We fight to preserve. You only want to destroy."

The Drode frowned. "Maybe not as much potential as I thought. Still, good job, all of you. I'm very proud. Have fun keeping your secrets. And when the time comes to pay for the gift I gave you, try not to complain too much."

He was gone, but a dark feeling lingered.

James shuddered. "I wish he wouldn't do that. He's supposed to be on our side. Does he have to insult us all the time?"

"He's on his own side," Melissa answered.

Rachel took Gideon from me, smiling. "We're on our own side, too. We take care of our own."

We all gathered around them, mother and child. In a way, Gideon was everyone's child. I knew, now, that no one here would ever dream of giving up. I know the fight got hard, and after what we saw on Grunn'Nesh, we'd be tempted to give it up. But all I had to do was think about Gideon. That tiny child. Defenseless, helpless... We'd all give up anything to protect him.

I know that we've all told ourselves we were saving the world. But that's kind of a big thing, you know? It's hard to really think about what that means, hard to boil it down to something you can understand. I know it was hard for me, at least. But this...this I could understand. I couldn't fight to save the world. But I could sure as hell fight to protect this child.

Yeah. For this kid, and for all the others like him everywhere, we would fight.

* * *

And now, to leave you with some words of wisdom from Streetlight Manifesto:

"Dear Mr. Gepetto:  
I hope this finds you well  
I wrote this letter  
'cause we miss you here in Hell

And now I know it's hard when you don't know what to think  
And every single smile is a thorn when you're waking up  
You might try but you won't get by until you're crucified for all the things you try to do  
And I don't care if you sink or swim  
And I don't care how you hold it in  
As long as you don't bother me  
With all the things I don't bother you with  
And 9 times out of 10 you might be right  
But what about that time you know you're wrong?  
Keep singing that same song  
And everybody smiles but they'll never get along

I'm trying and I'm trying and I'm trying and I'm trying to let go:  
But everybody's going down tonight

We are the few that won't say nothing right  
We are the footsteps fading into the night  
Nobody cares and nobody stares with such conviction and I say:  
I never wanted this, no one ever wanted this  
But they gave it to me so I might as well be proud of it  
And I don't know where we went wrong  
All i know now is i got to do something right

So come clean  
No one should have have to live with the things you've seen  
But you're living anyway"  
- We Are The Few

* * *

**Don't miss the next installment of the Animorphs series:**

**#75: THE BAKESALE  
**

We were feeling pretty good about ourselves when we got home. It isn't every day we win a victory so clearly. Still, it was a hard fight and we were all tired. I was glad to be home; glad to be back with our son. Kristina handed Gideon to me as soon as we walked in.

"Was he bad?" I asked. She was pretty quick to give him back.

"No more than other kids his age. He cried a bit a few hours ago but was fine when I gave him a bottle," Kristina answered. "I think he knew you were almost home, though."

I nodded. "Thanks, Kristina. I don't know what we'd do without you."

"Pay a real baby sitter?" she suggested.

Everyone else was trickling back to their own rooms. Well, as close as that came. Kristina went back to what used to be James's room; we had nowhere else to put her for the moment and she needed her privacy. James was stuck sleeping on the couch, and Ronnie was over against the wall in a cot we bought at an army surplus store.

We didn't trust Ronnie alone just yet. I knew he tended to drink when there was nothing else to do, and the last thing we needed was a loose cannon with a drinking problem. So we were keeping an eye on him for a little bit. Once we were sure he could handle himself, we'd let him do what he wanted to do.

Al slept in the living room as well. He made himself a nice little spot between the couch and the wall. And of course, David slept there, too. He wasn't allowed in Kristina's room alone – after all, he was a teenage boy and there are limits to what's allowable – and we didn't want him sneaking into our room, either.

Tobias and I, naturally, shared our room with Gideon. Tobias was already in there, but he wasn't asleep. He had a small, burnt-orange cube in one hand and a communicator in the other. The heads of several Andalites hovered in the air over it. At least, I assume it was several. They all looked alike to me. The cube was projecting some sort of star chart – I never learned how to read those things. I guess it was a battle map of some kind. Tobias was talking.

"-Taxxon world used to be important as an industrial center, but with the Yeerks' new, heavier reliance on the Pythagi, it isn't critical anymore."

((Even if it is not needed as a manufacturing center, it is still a source of countless hosts,)) one of the Andalites responded. I had no idea which.

"Taxxon hosts," I snorted. The heads turned to glare at me. Maybe for interrupting them, I didn't care. We always spoke our minds when we were making plans. Even playing by their rules, I had every right to speak. I was a Prince now, officially. And Tobias was, technically, my commander. As long as he didn't silence me, I was free to speak. And of course, he wouldn't try something stupid like that. I continued. "Just give one a scratch and the fifty around him will eat him up in a matter of seconds. Not a danger. Especially when the Yeerks seem to have access to limitless Kelbrid anyway."

Tobias nodded. "Those hosts are virtually useless now. If they want Taxxons, let them have them. Much better to have those soldiers reinforcing important locations than guarding things we don't need. What's the situation on Hork-bajir?"

One of the Andalites shook his head. I believe his name was Glorfindel, Tobias's old commander, at least in name. ((A stalemate, for the moment. My forces and the Kelbrid still fight over the surface, and the Hork-bajir hosts fight with the free ones in the trees. No side has any advantage. If we had some reinforcements...))

((We have none to spare,)) another Andalite answered. I recognized that one easily. Alloran, newly promoted to the head of the Andalite War Council. I think that made him the overall commander of this war. ((You will have to break the stalemate on your own, War-Prince Glorfindel.))

"My intelligence indicates that the new Yeerk Emperor is leery of using Kelbrid more than is necessary," Tobias told Alloran. That intelligence came from observations Jeanne and Melissa made when they encountered the Yeerk Emperor on a recent mission. The charming twin brother of our own Visser. I was sure there was some way to use that to our advantage, but political stuff isn't really my thing. "If we force him to withdraw troops from Hork-bajir, he'll take the Hork-bajir Controllers. That will give the natives uncontested control over the trees. I'd suggest digging your soldiers in the canyon, in the old Arn city. Control the sky and the deeps and hit the Kelbrid from both sides. Even Kelbrid will break under that."

Glordinfel's image shuddered. ((I hate the deeps. That's no place for an Andalite.))

"Neither's a Kelbrid stomach," I answered. They wanted reinforcements? There was one source these idiots seemed to forget about. I looked at Alloran's hologram. "How's the female recruitment program coming?"

Alloran was silent for a few moments. Then, he sighed, almost disappointed. ((Better than expected, especially among the younger females. The projections say that by the end of the year, we will have increased the size of the fleet by one fourth. It will possibly be doubled by next year.))

Tobias and I nodded. These idiots seemed to forget that their women could fight just as well as the men. Especially with the morphing technology, long-range weapons, and all the other fun sciency stuff. The size of your tailblade really didn't mean anything anymore. I think we were slowly succeeding in drilling that through Alloran's head. The others were considerably more resistant, but Alloran had learned a thing or two in his time, and Caysath, the newly-elected leader of the Andalites and a friend of ours, was very open to new things. I liked that about him.

A new face appeared among the currently present ones. This one was recognizable by the fact that he was missing a stalk-eye. Asculan-Semitur-Langor, a well-respected Captain-Prince, member of the War Council, and Alloran's son. Pound for pound, probably the guy with the biggest stick to swing here. ((My apologies for the lateness of my arrival,)) he answered. ((The Anati troops we were supposed to meet with sent warning that they had been ambushed by enemy forces and were breaking off their attack on the Mekrao colony. My forces, it seems, are currently available to be sent elsewhere.))

We passed the next couple of hours in council with the Andalites, helping them plan where t attack, when, and who should go. It was a big change from the old days when it was just us against the world. Caysath and Alloran respected what we could do and they were forcing the other Andalite military leaders to respect it, too. They were warming up to us, slowly. We were, after all, very good at what we did.

There was a secret Tobias and I were keeping, though; something we weren't planning on sharing with anyone, even the other Animorphs. There was a reason why Tobias was so good at planning large-scale campaigns like this. Once, when he nearly died in a Yeerk torture chamber, he somehow gained some of his father's memories. War-Prince Elfangor had been very good at what he did as well, and that experience helped Tobias a great deal. There was a second reason, one considerably darker.

Tobias had a Howler morph he used frequently. And Howlers have a collective memory. Stored inside their DNA are the memories of every battle they ever fought and won. Hundreds of campaigns of slaughter against all parts of the galaxy, against all kinds of opponents. From primitive societies to highly-advanced military powers, the Howlers remembered it all. And so did Tobias, when he chose to dip into that pool of experience. Lately, he had been doing that far more often than I was comfortable with. If it was up to him, he'd be morphed right now. I wanted him to stop, but he felt like it was something he had to do. He can be stubborn, sometimes. That'll have to stop before something bad happens, but for now, there isn't much I can do...

Eventually, I got frustrated with their stupidity, called Asculan some things I'd regret if I didn't mean them, tucked Gideon into his crib, and went to sleep. I only had to shush the bunch of them twice before they finally quieted down and let me sleep.

I don't know what time it was when James knocked on our door. It must have been very late because Tobias had finally hung up and gone to sleep. He didn't wake up when James knocked. He was actually a light sleeper, but lately he was exhausted.

"What is it?" I growled. If this wasn't important, I was going to strangle him.

"There's someone at the door...um...we should wake Tobias."

"Who's there, James?" I demanded. "Unless it's Guraff himself, I'm going back to sleep."

"Close," he answered. "It's one of the Apostates."

**Preview Summary**

After nine long months of waiting, Rachel is finally back in action again. And just in time too. The Animorphs might be up against their greatest challenge yet: an ancient threat far more destructive than the Yeerks. One that Earth is going to have to deal with very, very soon.

In addition to protecting the world from one of the galaxy's greatest dangers, the Animorphs must help the inexperienced military forces of Earth launch the planet's very first invasion of another world. with more dangers than they've ever experienced before, the Animorphs need Rachel more than ever.


End file.
